Wealth. Fame. Power.Three simple wants. That's what they tell you. Desire one, and maybe the Tower hears you. Want all three, and people call you greedy.
I wanted all three.
The auditorium hummed with nervous energy, packed with every eighteen-year-old from our district. Sabrina sat beside me, her leg bouncing fast enough to power a small generator. Red hair spilling over her shoulders, catching light even under the harsh fluorescents. She kept pretending to slice things with her hand, a nervous habit she'd had since we met.
"You're going to accidentally chop someone's head off before you get your real powers," I whispered.
She glanced at me, those red eyes narrowing behind her glasses. "Shut up, I'm practicing."
"For what? The invisible fruit ninja championships?"
She kept slicing air. I reached over and caught her hand mid-chop, lacing my fingers through hers. Her palm was sweaty but warm. Some things never changed.
"You'll do fine," I said. "We both will."
Her smile turned real then, dimples appearing like they always did when she forgot to be nervous. She squeezed my hand and nodded.
The District Leader approached the podium, her expensive Spire District suit probably worth more than my entire apartment. Her hair was styled into that perfect wave that screamed "I paid someone to make this look effortless."
"Welcome to the Fiftieth Annual Awakening Ceremony," she announced, voice carrying without seeming to try. "Outside, our city celebrates five decades since the Tower's arrival changed everything. Tonight, some of you will join that celebration as Awakened."
I tuned out as she launched into the usual speech about duty and privilege. My attention drifted to the massive stone tablet at the center of the stage—smooth black surface, runes etched along its border, old as hell but somehow still new-looking. The Awakening Stone. One touch and your life changes forever. Or not.
"—only one percent of humanity," the Leader was saying when I tuned back in. "The Tower chooses few, but those few reshape our world."
Sabrina's grip tightened. I glanced at her, at the worry lines forming between her brows.
"Hey," I murmured. "If I make it and you don't, I'll take care of you."
Her eyes flashed. "If you make it and I don't, I'll kick your ass for suggesting I need taking care of."
I grinned. "And if we both make it?"
"Then the Tower better prepare for trouble."
The principal took over, clipboard in hand. "When I call your name, please approach the stone, place your palm flat against the surface, and hold until the reading completes."
First up was Amit Chaudry. He walked to the stage looking like he might puke, pressed his hand against the stone, and... nothing. The stone remained dark. He hung his head and walked off stage to scattered, pitying applause.
Ten more failures followed. The crowd grew restless. Someone behind us whispered that maybe this was a bad batch.
Then: "Elena Wong."
A quiet girl from our calculus class approached the stone. When she pressed her hand against it, the surface lit up blue, runes spinning in concentric circles. The crowd collectively held its breath.
"Elena Wong," announced the principal. "Class: Guardian. Affinity: Torrent. Ichor Type: Bastion."
The audience erupted. Elena stood there looking stunned as her Akashic Record projected above the stone for everyone to see.
After that, the successes came more steadily. About one in four students walked away with a class. Some cried. Others pumped their fists. Parents in the audience section screamed themselves hoarse.
"Broderick Wells."
The guy who'd spent four years trying to outdo me in everything strutted onto the stage like he already knew the outcome. When he placed his hand on the stone, it lit up bright green.
"Broderick Wells. Class: Phantom. Affinity: Shift. Ichor Type: Mirage."
The crowd went nuts. A Phantom. One of the rarest classes in the system.
Broderick turned toward the audience, catching my eye specifically. His smirk said everything: Beat that, Sparrow.
"Sabrina York."
Sabrina squeezed my hand once before letting go. I watched her walk to the stage, her pleated skirt swaying with each step. She was trying so hard to look confident, but I could see the tension in her shoulders.
When her palm hit the stone, pink light erupted, so bright people shielded their eyes.
"Sabrina York. Class: Bloom Binder. Affinity: Bind. Ichor Type: Verdant."
Holy shit. A Bind user. The rarest affinity by a mile, and she got a support class that every major guild would fight over. I couldn't help the pride that swelled in my chest.
Sabrina looked back at me, eyes wide with shock, a smile breaking across her face.
Then: "Nox Sparrow."
My turn.
I stood, rolled my shoulders, and walked toward the stage like I owned it. No need for nerves. This was just formality. The stone would light up, they'd announce whatever class matched my natural talents, and life would begin for real.
The stone felt cool under my palm. I waited.
Ten seconds passed.
Twenty seconds.
The audience began to murmur.
The principal cleared her throat. "Perhaps try again, Mr. Sparrow."
I pressed harder. Nothing.
The runes remained dark. Dead. No response.
"Nox Sparrow," the principal announced, her voice dropping that sympathetic octave that made my teeth clench. "Failed to awaken."
The words hit like a physical blow. Failed. To. Awaken.
I pulled my hand away, staring at my palm like it might explain itself. The mumbling grew louder. Someone laughed—quickly hushed by those around them.
I walked off stage, face burning. Not from embarrassment. From rage.
This wasn't right. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. I was meant for the Tower. I had always been meant for it.
I returned to my seat. Sabrina reached for my hand. I pulled away.
"Nox—"
"Don't."
She fell silent. The ceremony continued around us, names called, lives changed, futures secured. I sat perfectly still, hands on my knees, seeing nothing.
Wealth. Fame. Power. Gone in twenty seconds of silence from a fucking rock.
After the ceremony, parents swarmed their newly Awakened children. The failures huddled together near the exit, some crying, others trying to look like it didn't matter. I stood alone, watching Sabrina being congratulated by everyone who passed her.
A Bloom Binder with Bind affinity. She'd have recruitment offers before morning.
She spotted me across the room and made her way over, pushing through the crowd.
"Nox, I'm so sorry—"
"Why? You got what you wanted."
Her face fell. "That's not fair."
"Life's not fair. I just found that out twenty minutes ago."
"We can talk about this. Figure something out."
I laughed. The sound was ugly even to my ears. "Figure what out, Sabrina? You're going to Veilgate. You'll join a guild, climb the Tower, make more money in your first month than I'll see in a year."
"So come with me," she said, grabbing my hand. "There are jobs for civilians in Veilgate. You could—"
"What? Carry your bags? Cheer from the sidelines? Be the boyfriend who couldn't cut it?"
Her eyes narrowed. "That's not what I meant."
"It's what would happen."
"So you've got it all figured out, then? In the twenty minutes since you found out?"
I stepped back. "Yeah, I do. This is where it ends."
"What?"
"Us. This." I gestured between us. "It's over."
She stared at me like I'd slapped her. "You're breaking up with me because I awakened and you didn't?"
"I'm breaking up with you because our paths just went in opposite directions. I'm saving us both time."
"That's bullshit," she said, voice rising. "You're pushing me away before I can leave you. That's what this is."
"Think whatever you want."
"Nox Sparrow, you look me in the eyes and tell me you don't love me anymore. Right now."
"I don't need you anymore."
Her hand moved faster than I could track. The crack of her palm against my cheek echoed in the suddenly quiet space around us. My head snapped to the side from the force of it.
When I looked back, her eyes were bright with tears she refused to let fall.
"Fuck you," she whispered. "And fuck whatever this is. I would have stayed."
Then she walked away, straight-backed and quick, not looking back once.
The crowd parted for her. Several people looked at me with open disgust. I didn't care. This wasn't about them. It wasn't even about her, not really.
It was about math. Simple calculation. I'd run the numbers in my head the moment the stone stayed dark. Sabrina York, Bloom Binder, would have a life I couldn't touch. She'd be surrounded by powerful climbers, wealthy guilds, people who understood her world.
If she stayed with me, she'd be splitting herself between two realities. She'd resent me eventually. Everyone would tell her to leave the Null behind.
So I removed the choice. Clean. Clinical. Final.
My cheek burned where she'd hit me. I deserved that.
Outside the auditorium, the Fiftieth Anniversary celebrations filled the night with light and noise. Fireworks painted the sky in colors that reminded me of the stone's glow when it recognized someone worthy.
I walked away from it all, hand in my pocket, fingers wrapped around the old compass that never pointed north. The only thing I had left of a family I barely remembered.
"Wealth. Fame. Power," I muttered to myself. "I still want all three."
The compass needle spun lazily, then settled, pointing toward the distant silhouette of the Tower that had just rejected me.
Stupid fucking compass.