Chapter 13

The First Real Test

The purple energy formed at the tip of Solias’ golden Wand before blasting out and slamming into target after target. Running along the training course within the gray room, jumping over a small platform created by a few of the tiles within the room and sliding on his knees under a low-hanging beam that shot out of a hidden spot in the wall, he released another burst of magic at the final target and the mixture of the alarm sounding off and the classmates cheering echoed throughout the large training room. The vidscreen on the far side of the wall where he had started the course showed his score compared to the others in the class who had attempted so far.

Fashryn/Tasha Gremrick 

No one had been surprised when Tasha managed to tie with her sister. They’d all seen how equal both girls were multiple times. They would always tie or trade off on scores in their classes and their accomplishments. Where Fashryn seemed to be a little more skilled in taking charge and crafting her magical bullets, Tasha proved to be one step ahead of her when it came to duels and her knowledge of Caster history. Today’s test was no different in their constant contest against one another as Fashryn’s accuracy and Tasha’s time had given them a matching score.

Solias Engel

His accuracy had matched the older twin’s, but he had taken only a second longer than Tasha to complete the course.

Grant Huston

The rest of the class was caught by surprise when he opted to use his hammer instead of his Wand. He had asked Miss Einfeld if it was allowed since his shielding magic wasn’t suited to offensive use and she had agreed. He wasn’t the first student she had taught and tested with a magical aptitude not well suited to these sorts of tests. His skills with his hammer were already known by the rest of the students thanks to their duels, but his ability to wield such a heavy weapon so casually still proved impressive. The use of his weapon still had an effect on his time, and he had been knocked down in score by Solias’ superior accuracy and time. Seeing his name brought down a place didn’t seem to affect him as he kept his normally cool composure. 

Xana Thrine

The wolf girl wasn’t standing alone anymore. Today she was standing surprisingly close to Tasha, a small smile on her face. Thankfully she had enough time to heal mostly after the attack after the school’s party, but her eye was still covered with a bandage for another day and hampered her vision during the test. It cost her a few points in accuracy, but she had still finished the course with an impressive score. After her run she had looked a bit discouraged, but Tasha had leaned in surprisingly close and whispered something to her that none of the others could hear, but the words were enough to bring a warm, awkward smile to the young wolf Infurnal.

Ressio Tomaru

Rock Warren

The Infurnal Tiger had managed to just push past Rock’s score in both categories. Rock was the first attempt of everyone and he had gone through his run using his Wand. Similar to Grant, his magical abilities were not meant for offense and it hindered him through his entire run against the targets.

Due to Ressio’s struggles in making his own caster bullets he had the least amount of time to practice with his own Wand. He was still getting used to the feel of it compared to the practice Wands they used during their duels. He still had a ways to go, but since the day Ressio had received his personal Wand there was a new force that drove him to do better in every class.

Most of the students were surprised when Ressio’s score was shown. For someone with less practice than the other’s, his accuracy and time was still impressive. More surprising than the tiger Infurnal’s skills though was when Rock came up to him with his scars framing the stern look on his face. There had been a brief pause before he suddenly laughed and congratulated his classmate, clapping him on his back with two heavy smacks.

“All right Vyrion, your turn.” Miss Ren smiled from the side as she stood beside Miss Einfeld as she pressed a button. The two teachers were working together today to test and score the students on their aptitudes with their Wands. Just like every time before, the crystals powering the machines lit up and mechanisms controlling the room began to move around as if they had a mind of their own. Gray and silver platforms with criss cross patterns turned and twisted, morphing the room into something completely new yet again. With each press of the button in the teacher’s hand, a new challenge was created.

“You got this Gale. Just don’t make me look bad.” Solias gave a playful smirk, smacking the other boy on his back.

Vyrion stumbled a little from the impact of the hand on his back and smirked back at him as he stepped forward, masking his nerves with a confident smile as he had been taught all his life. “Can’t promise you anything.”

Standing at the starting point, Vyrion brushed his fingers along his Wand holstered at his hip. He knew he didn’t have to win, but something in the back of his mind nagged at him. He could beat Rock without much effort thanks to his magical aptitude, and he wasn’t too worried about Ressio’s score either since he was still getting used to the feel of his own Wand. Xana’s was a good bit higher, but still beatable thanks to her injuries limiting her abilities. Solias had proven again and again to be just as good as the Gremrick sisters, and the young heir felt the need to finally prove he could match up to them.

The alarm filled the room, signaling the start of the test. Vyrion’s legs lifted from the stone floor and his body was moving through instinct as his mind calculated the possibility of beating their scores. A flash of red caught his eyes and he quickly spun on his heel, pulling his Wand free from his hip and focusing on the target. Pulling the trigger a blast of pure black energy shot into the target; off center but the magic quickly took effect and began crushing it into a distorted mass of metal on impact.

“One.”

Falling back into the momentum of his spin he continued forward. Another spot of red overhead and he released a fresh blast of magic erupted from his gun, this one catching the right half of the target and warping its shape. 

“Two.”

The energy was already draining from him having to use his Wand so quickly twice in a row. Ever since his stay in the White Room with the ghosts, he had been working on his stamina. Ever since his first duel against the wolf Infurnal he had been training his focus. When he wasn’t studying, he was taking time to try and better his abilities with his Wand. For this test he had kept count every time the other students ran through their course. “Just three more.”

A cylindrical beam suddenly swung out, causing Vyrion to lunge forward and land on his stomach to keep from getting hit. He had felt the beam brush past his head and thanked his reflexes. The landing was rough and he winced a little as the air escaped from his lungs briefly. Fighting the ache inside his stomach, he looked up and saw the holographic numbers counting away on the vidscreen with every breath he took.

He was wasting time. Pushing off of the floor, he quickly continued through the course, forcing himself to breathe through the burning in his lungs and blasting the next target. He wasn’t the only one to have made a mistake or two during his run, but he had to prove himself. He had to make up for his missteps. 

The fourth target soon followed as it tried to fly past him along a platform and he could feel he was at the end of his energy as he let loose another shot from his Wand. The target fell to the floor along with the small platform it had been stationed on. Trying to maintain his focus on both running and keeping his Wand ready was proving difficult at this point, his breath coming out in heavy gasps as he could feel the seat running down his face.

Stumbling a little over a very low platform he hadn’t noticed, he pulled the trigger of his Wand and his gravity magic shot forth, only barely catching the final target and the alarm’s buzz announced the end of his test.

Catching his breath, Vyrion sat back and propped himself up with his hands. Looking up at the vidscreen to see his score being calculated by the machines. All the students were fixated on the scoreboard as it gave a final blink and with a low hum showed the final rankings.

 Fashryn/Tasha Gremrick; Still tied in first.

Solias Engel

Grant Huston

Xana Thrine

Vyrion Gale

Ressio Tomaru

Rock Warren

A sigh escaped his lips, ignoring the last of the scores since he knew they had stayed the same. He hadn’t even been able to outdo the Infurnal Wolf girl who was still recovering. If he hadn’t tripped, if he had hit that last target more head on, he would have beaten her and Grant both. Maybe even tied with Solias. He took a little comfort knowing he wasn’t at the very bottom though. He wasn’t last and he’d make sure he’d never be last.

“All right, students. Come here.” Allison Ren called out and the teenagers all followed her instructions so they were surrounding her and Miss Einfeld. “Don’t let your score upset you if you didn’t mark as high as you had hoped. If you focus on the actual numbers, you all did very well.” Her words helped ease their concerns. 

Brigitte took over from there.

“Today you have each proven that you’re ready for a field test. This will be your first true test of your skills in the world outside of the Academy.”

Everyone looked between each other, surprised by the news. They knew this test was important, it was the reason they were all pushing their limits to beat one another, but none of them had expected this. Allison gave them a moment to process the news before speaking once again.

“Of course, this is too many Casters to all be assigned to one mission. So you will be split into two groups. Four Casters is still a pretty large number, but that should prove an advantage to you all for your first assignment. Solias will be the leader of Team A, in a team along with Rock, Grant, and Vyrion. Fashryn, you will be leading Team B that will include Tasha, Xana, and Ressio. Watching you all grow and work together, I firmly believe these teams will work best together on the missions you’ve been assigned. ”

Xana couldn’t hide her growing smile, excitement and nervousness mixing inside of her at the realization of going on her first mission. She was thrilled to be going on the mission with Tasha. This would be another chance to prove herself as a strong Infurnal girl.

Vyrion held back a groan, annoyed he wasn’t the leader of a group, but thankful the leader would be Solias at least. He’d gotten to know him better since first arriving and after the party they had started to become a bit more acquainted. The black haired teenager knew Solias was a good guy who he could trust. With a little envy still filling him, he forced a smile and gave him a high five. “Congrats. You earned it with that score.”

Allison and Brigitte gave the students the chance to disperse and a little time to themselves to wash up and get some food in their stomachs before they all returned to the classroom. This was the most full the classroom had ever been since Vyrion had come here on his first day a couple months late into the year.

“Now then. Solias, your team is being sent to handle an IMP. Lethal force will be required.” She quickly continued before any of them could ask the questions she knew were coming. “No need to worry. It’s a smaller IMP that’s been harassing a town. We’ve already sent a qualified Caster to defend the town and they’ll be waiting to assist you when you get there. They won’t let anything happen to you so long as you’re careful and follow their instructions. Remember, they have experience that you all lack.” 

She then looked over the twin sisters, landing on the newly appointed leader of Team B. “Fashryn’s team will be going to a small Infurnal settlement that’s been having issues with some bandit activity. It seems the bandits believe Casters don’t have time to protect something so small, so I’m looking forward to you proving them wrong. I’m also hoping that two Infurnals being a part of the team aiding those in need will make a strong statement. The settlement is understandably still wary of the motives of humans trying to assist them, so please show them they can trust Casters.”

She allowed a brief pause for the two teams to process the information before continuing her instructions.

 “You’ll all be leaving two days from now by airship, so make sure you’re well rested and fully prepared. You’ll be required to take your Wands and your weapons with you of course, so make sure that everything is thoroughly prepared.” 

She dismissed the students and watched as they began to leave the room. “Remember, you’re going into the real world. These are real battles. While I believe in each and every one of you, death is a possibility, so take this seriously.”

A heavy feeling filled the air at her warning as the students glanced at one another. Realization hit them. They were about to get their first real experience in being Casters, and some of them were starting to wonder if they would all make it back.

Next Chapter: Team Solias