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The Academy guards searched Auretria's dorm until sunrise.
They found nothing.
No traces of the robed figure.
No shadow marks.
No warped Aether readings.
To everyone else, it was just a "magical surge" in the middle of the night.
To Auretria, it was a warning.
By morning, she still hadn't slept. Her hands shook every time she blinked. She couldn't get the creature's voice out of her mind.
Child of Aether… you are changing.
Professor Elyra insisted on keeping her in the infirmary for the day, but Auretria refused. She didn't want to lie down. Didn't want to be alone. Didn't want the shadows around her to grow again.
So she forced herself back into class.
But the Academy felt wrong.
Hallways that were normally bright seemed… dimmer.
Students whispered when she passed—more than usual.
Not fearful, but tense. As if something about her had shifted overnight.
And they were right.
Every step she took, the Aether in her chest felt heavier. More aware.
Like it wasn't just inside her—
like it was looking around.
Combat Training Grounds — Afternoon
Auretria walked onto the practice field, determined to look normal. Determined to push through.
But the sky above the grounds was unnaturally dark, clouds rippling with streaks of violet—something Auretria had never seen.
Elyra narrowed her eyes at the sky, whispering, "Again… the distortion."
Auretria swallowed.
"Distortion?"
Elyra didn't answer.
Instead, she gestured to the class. "Pair up. Light sparring."
Everyone scattered, except—
A boy with dark hair stepped in front of Auretria.
Cyras Vellhart.
Second-year prodigy. Top of the combat rankings. Known for being cold, talented, and annoyingly curious.
His eyes locked on her like he'd been waiting.
"You. With me."
Auretria blinked. "Why?"
"Because," Cyras said calmly, "your Aether feels like it's about to explode, and I want to see why."
Not great.
She tried to refuse. "I'm not feeling—"
Cyras lifted a practice blade. "If you lie, I'll know."
Auretria tensed.
Everyone was already watching. Whispering.
Backing out now would make it worse.
"Fine," she muttered.
The duel began.
Cyras struck first—clean, controlled, testing her guard.
Auretria parried.
But when she stepped back, the world pulsed—once, sharply.
Her vision flickered.
The shadows around Cyras stretched longer than they should. The sky above them rippled again. Something unseen vibrated in the air.
Auretria's heart dropped.
It's here.
I can feel it.
Cyras came at her again, faster.
"Focus," he warned. "Unless you want to get knocked—"
Auretria jumped back—too far. Aether surged into her limbs, boosting her without permission.
Cyras froze.
"That was no beginner's movement."
Auretria panicked. "It wasn't intentional—"
Then the ground beneath her cracked.
Not from her.
From something below.
A low, grinding rumble echoed across the training field. Students stumbled. Weapons dropped. Birds scattered violently from the trees.
Elyra turned sharply toward the forest border.
"No…"
The earth split.
Dark smoke seeped through the crack, swirling upward like ink in water.
Cyras reacted instantly—pulling Auretria behind him. "Stay close."
She didn't argue.
Because she recognized the smoke.
It was the same darkness that had seeped beneath her floorboards last night.
The same presence.
The same wrongness.
From the fissure, a shape began to rise.
Not human.
Not animal.
A twisted, warped creature of shadows with glowing pale eyes—just like the masked figure, but wild, unstable, trembling with violent energy.
A corrupted Aether beast.
Students screamed.
The instructors shouted for formation.
Magic flared everywhere—too chaotic, too rushed.
Elyra yelled, "Everyone fall back! That creature is unstable!"
But the monster wasn't looking at them.
Its eyes locked directly onto Auretria.
Her blood froze.
"It's targeting her!" Cyras shouted.
Auretria took a shaky step back. "Why me? Why—"
The creature lunged.
Cyras grabbed her wrist and pulled her aside just as the beast crashed into the ground where she stood, cracking the stone like brittle glass.
Auretria's heart hammered painfully. She felt her pulse in her teeth.
"Cyras—let me go—"
"No," he snapped. "You're unstable, and that thing wants you. I'm not letting—"
A powerful pulse burst from the monster.
Everyone hit the ground.
Everyone except Auretria.
Because the Aether inside her surged upward to meet the attack—shielding her with a blue wave of force.
Cyras stared at her, wide-eyed.
"Auretria… what are you?"
She didn't know.
She didn't have an answer.
But the shadow beast charged again, and she didn't have time to think.
Her Aether burst outward.
This time, she didn't hold back.
The world lit up with brilliant blue energy as her power exploded in a shockwave—blinding, violent, raw. The force threw the beast back, slamming it into the cracked earth.
The ground trembled.
The clouds above twisted more violently.
The fissure glowed.
And for a brief second—
Auretria saw a silhouette inside the smoke.
Tall.
Masked.
Watching.
It found me again.
The figure lifted a hand.
The beast dissolved into shadow particles, sucked back into the fissure before the instructors could even recover.
Then the crack closed.
The darkness vanished.
The field fell silent.
Only Auretria remained glowing faintly with unstable Aether, blue light trembling around her like fire barely contained.
Elyra rushed forward, but Cyras stepped between them, eyes fixed on the fading light around Auretria.
"What," he whispered, "are they hiding about you?"
Auretria couldn't breathe.
Because she already knew:
The robed figure hadn't attacked her.
It had tested her.
And now… it knew exactly how strong she was.
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