Kael Aldrich sat on the cold stone bench, hands clenched between his knees, willing them not to shake.
The Hall of Ascension was suffocating heavy with incense, the weight of staring nobles, and the echo of whispered prayers. At the center of the chamber, a crystal sphere rested on a silver pedestal, pulsing faintly with inner light. Each candidate placed their hand upon it, and the orb flared to reveal the strength of their magic.
It was supposed to be glorious.
"Next, Kael Aldrich."
The examiner's voice cut through the air. Dozens of heads turned. Kael felt their gazes like hooks pulling him forward. The Aldrich name was too heavy to carry quietly.
He rose, legs stiff, and walked to the orb. His father's presence pressed at the back of his skull; Lord Cedric sat in the gallery above, broad shoulders cloaked in military blue, his face carved from stone. His mother, Lady Seraphine, sat at his side, unreadable behind her jeweled mask of composure. And somewhere in the crowd was Elias Kael's brother, his example, the prodigy whose test years ago had lit this same hall with blazing fire.
Kael swallowed hard and placed his hand on the crystal.
Nothing happened.
A murmur spread instantly.
He clenched his teeth, pushing harder, as if he could wring magic out by will alone. His breath grew ragged. His palm dampened with sweat. Still nothing.
The orb sat cold beneath his touch, as lifeless as stone.
"Again," the examiner ordered.
Kael tried again. His heart thundered. He pictured sparks, lightning, anything. The orb refused him.
The whispers sharpened into snickers.
"Is it broken?"
"No it's him."
"An Aldrich without power . What a joke."
Kael's face burned, but he refused to pull his hand away first. He waited until the examiner himself pushed the orb back, shaking his head.
"That will do," the man said.
It was over.
Kael turned and walked stiffly from the hall, forcing his spine straight even as his chest hollowed out. He didn't let himself stumble until the doors closed behind him.
The carriage ride home was a silence so thick it crushed the air from his lungs. His father sat across from him, eyes fixed out the window, jaw iron-hard. His mother's gaze was colder than ice; she didn't look at him once.
Kael stared at the floorboards, each clatter of the wheels on cobblestones echoing in his chest.
When they reached the Aldrich estate, Cedric's voice came, deep and sharp. "To your chambers."
That was all.
Kael obeyed.
His room was stripped bare by the time he entered it that night. Shelves emptied, practice weapons removed, even the little charms he had bought at the academy market vanished. What remained was polished, stark furniture and silence.
Kael sat on the edge of his bed, staring at his empty desk.
The knock at the door startled him. He half-expected Cedric's voice again, but when it creaked open, it was Elias.
"Rough day," Elias said softly. He still wore his officer's coat, the golden crest of the royal battlemages catching the lamplight.
Kael turned away. "If you came to tell me it doesn't matter, don't. It matters to everyone. You lit up that orb like the sun. Me? I couldn't even make it flicker."
Elias crossed the room and sat beside him. "You're not me, Kael. And you don't need to be."
Kael barked a bitter laugh. "Tell that to Father."
Elias's jaw tightened. For a long moment he said nothing. Then he set a hand on Kael's shoulder, firm and warm. "You're still my brother. That's what matters to me. Don't forget that."
Kael swallowed hard and nodded, but the words didn't stop the ache in his chest.
The next afternoon, Kael sought quiet in the lower gardens. The manor's formal lawns stretched out like something from a painting stone paths weaving between trimmed hedges, fountains whispering, and roses climbing trellises heavy with late summer bloom.
He thought he was alone.
"Cousin Kael," a voice called, smug and sharp.
Kael turned. Striding down the gravel path was Rowan Aldrich, a distant cousin from one of the side branches of the family. Rowan was only a year older, but he carried himself like a lord already, back straight, chin lifted, dark eyes brimming with self-importance. Two of his friends trailed behind him, both wearing the Aldrich crest.
Kael stiffened. "Rowan."
Rowan's grin was all teeth. "Word spreads fast, you know. About the test."
Kael's jaw clenched. "Leave me alone."
But Rowan stepped closer, lowering his voice in mock sympathy. "The shame must be unbearable. All that power in your bloodline, and you tsk tsk tsk just empty." He snapped his fingers, and flame flickered in his palm. "Maybe you just need a little push."
He tossed the fireball.
Kael didn't think, he just reacted. His hand came up, a shout on his lips that never formed….
And the flame vanished midair. Gone.
Rowan stumbled backward, face draining of color. He clutched his chest with a gasp, knees buckling slightly as if something vital had been stolen. His two friends froze, eyes wide.
Kael's heart thundered. His whole body tingled with strange heat, buzzing under his skin. He hadn't cast anything. He couldn't. But the fire… it hadn't died. He had taken it.
Rowan stared at him in shock, sweat breaking across his brow. "What… what did you…."
Kael bolted.
He ran up the garden path, past the fountains, through the side doors of the manor. He didn't stop until he was in his chamber again, door slammed shut, chest heaving.
He looked down at his hands. They looked the same. Ordinary. But they weren't.
He had done something impossible.
The memory of Rowan's pale, gasping face made Kael's stomach twist. This wasn't normal magic. This wasn't safe.
He wanted to tell Elias needed to but the thought of Father finding out froze him. The Aldrichs wouldn't call this a gift. They'd call it dangerous. Unclean. Maybe even monstrous.
So he sat in the silence of his chamber, trembling, his skin still alive with the echo of stolen fire, and kept it to himself.
That night, sleep wouldn't come. Kael lay awake, staring at the ceiling, torn between fear and wonder.
Whatever he was, it wasn't what the orb had declared. He wasn't empty.
But what he carried inside might be worse.