The announcement came the next morning.
James was still finishing his ration bar when the academy chime rang out across the dorm towers, followed by the mechanical voice of the Head Administrator echoing through every hallway and slate.
"Attention all students. The following cadets are summoned for immediate assignment adjustment and entry into Emergency Simulation Protocol. Designation: Reassessment Block Nine."
The message paused.
Then the names came.
"Kael Riven. Tamsa Vey. Alric Nodrin. James Solkaris."
James blinked. The bar in his hand froze halfway to his mouth.
Across the room, Kael spat tea across his pillow.
"I'm sorry," he muttered, already reaching for his coat. "Did they just pull four of us into a combat simulation with zero notice?"
James stood. "Reassessment Block Nine?"
Kael's jaw tightened. "Last chance evaluation block. They don't use it unless they're trying to provoke a forced Awakening or weed someone out permanently."
"But we've already been placed," James said, slipping into his boots.
"Exactly. Which means either someone's panicking…" Kael tossed him a side glance, "…or someone's testing you."
The Solar Core pulsed the moment he stepped into the hallway. Not flashing. Not flaring. Just… waiting.
Waiting for him to say yes.
---
The simulation chamber was one of the underground domes—smaller than the combat arenas, but twice as secure. The walls were engraved with containment runes and Aether buffers. Inside, the floor was divided into six isolated zones, each encased in a translucent field.
James stepped into Zone 4.
Instructor Varra was there. She didn't acknowledge him, only tapped her slate and said, "Target data uploaded. Objective: Survive for three minutes or subdue threat."
He looked at the far end of the room.
A Rifthound shimmered into view—three meters long, fur bristling with raw Aether corruption, eyes glowing violet. Not real. Simulated.
But simulated didn't mean safe.
"Three minutes," Varra repeated.
The timer started.
The hound moved instantly—fast, predatory, all muscle and snapping jaws. James's body reacted before he could think. The warmth in his chest surged. His stance adjusted. He ducked left, the creature's jaws snapping shut inches from his shoulder.
The rod they'd given him wasn't weighted properly. It would break on the first solid hit.
He didn't plan to use it.
The system spoke.
[Core Sync – 16%]
> Combat Trigger: Accepted
Trait Unlocked: Flame-Kissed Focus
Buff: Strength +3, Focus +1 (Temporary – 3 min window)
Quest Received: Survive and Score Critical Hit on Simulated Entity
James spun under the next leap, his foot planting against the wall of the barrier as he redirected himself into a low slide. The motion should've hurt.
It didn't.
His arms surged with energy. The rod hummed with faint heat—borrowed, not generated. The Rifthound turned faster than expected, launching itself again.
This time, James didn't dodge.
He met it mid-charge, slamming the rod up beneath its jaw with enough force to throw sparks across the dome. The rod cracked. His hands went numb.
The creature reeled. Not stunned. But surprised.
James landed, skidding backwards, lungs tight.
Two more minutes.
He exhaled. His body moved again. Not elegant. Not rehearsed.
But efficient. Reactive.
Everything came down to motion and instinct.
He ducked, parried, sidestepped—
And then the voice returned. Not the system. Not the AI.
Him.
> Strike deeper, child. Let fire carry your will.
James didn't question it.
When the hound lunged again, he twisted into its motion and brought the rod down with both hands, not aiming for flesh—but for resonance.
The rod struck the glyph embedded in the creature's chest.
The simulation burst apart in a blast of violet static.
The timer froze at 00:18.
[Quest Complete]
> Solar Core Sync: 18%
Bond Reaction: Entity Pulse Increased
Crimson Egg Core Temperature Rising – Phase Two Nearing
James stood still, breath shallow. The broken rod fell from his hands. Instructor Varra was already walking toward him.
She didn't speak right away. Just stared.
Then: "Report to Diagnostics after your meal. Someone wants to review your reaction data."
James nodded, eyes still on where the Rifthound had been.
Kael passed him in the hallway minutes later, blood on his lip, grinning like he'd won a prizefight.
"Survived," he said. "Barely. You?"
James didn't smile.
But his eyes gleamed faintly gold.
"Just getting started."
Far beneath them, the dragon's egg pulsed again—and this time, when the heat rose inside it, the chamber's outer wall cracked slightly from the pressure.
Sundrakar was stirring.
And the Solar Core was no longer passive.