Monday morning dawned like the aftermath of an awful battle, full of injuries, shock and horror at the realities combat brought. Salman, a city full of the dry tinder of fear and rage had been lit, exploding from the news of the rebels taking Dunhaven.

The town guard had spent the night fighting looters, putting out fires and arresting people until there wasn’t an empty cell in the city. The Inquisitors had filled theirs up too. Now the guards were off duty, getting some well-earned rest, leaving it up to everyone else to clean up the mess.

The academy headmasters canceled the war games training, instead sending all able-bodied students to join official clean-up and assistance crews. They tracked down smoke to extinguish anything still smoldering. They ran messages, nailed up temporary windows and doors, helped with scut work in Salman’s healing centers and did whatever anyone in a uniform told them for the entire morning.

By the time lunchtime came around, Pax and his crew climbed out of the transport carriage with their fellow students. Their pets piled out, too, looking worn out after being extremely helpful in aiding the beleaguered city. Everyone was exhausted and looked a lot more like street rats than most of them ever had. The idea made Pax chuckle as they gave their names to the clerks keeping track of everyone.

He figured it was a good idea to make sure no one got left behind in a damaged building if they got injured. The organizers had instructed them to stay in groups of at least three, but there were always a few idiots.

They were probably also using the lists to make sure no one tried to get out of helping. Pax cast a longing look toward the dorm buildings. If he thought he could get away with it, he might hide in his room for the rest of the day.

“You get a two-hour break,” said the woman taking their names. “Eat, wash up, or just take a nap. Do whatever helps you recharge, but make sure you’re back here in two hours. And no shirkers. We’re keeping track.”

Pax gave her a tired nod while he waited for her to check off the rest of his crew.

Amil finished next and waved impatiently to the others. “Faster, guys. I’m starving.”

It didn’t take long before they hurried across campus to the dining hall in a tired silence. They had almost reached their destination when a young messenger girl caught sight of them and changed direction.

Pax had a moment’s thought that maybe the message wasn’t for him. But when his friends stepped out of the way, she came to a breathless stop right in front of him.

“Student Mage Pax Vipersworn?” She held out a sealed message for him.

He looked at it like a venomous snake and considered refusing it after how the last one had turned out. Not to mention the constant possibility that one of his teammates was in trouble and hadn’t checked in.

“It’s from your mentor, if that’s what’s botherin’ you.” She waved it at him impatiently again.

Letting out a relieved breath, he tossed her a copper and took it. Her demeanor changed in an instant as she gave him a quick smile and wave before running off again.

“Food.” Amil waved them toward the dining hall impatiently.

Pax broke the seal and quickly scanned the message as he followed his friends.

“Come to my office. Now. Try to be discrete. Tell your crew if you have to, but no one else. I have food. —Incedis.”

Pax’s brows rose, and his steps slowed.

“More bad news?” Rin moved closer with a look of worry on her face.

“No.” He lowered his voice. “Just that Incedis wants to see me now without letting anyone but you guys know.”

“Then go.” She looked relieved and then jealous. “Why doesn't my mentor summon me so I can get out of spending the afternoon cleaning up more of the disaster out there?”

When Pax realized Incedis might keep him from going back into the city, he suddenly felt much better.

Got to go, everyone. Incedis needs something. Check in when you all get back to campus again.

Amil gave him a jealous scowl while the others gave him nods and waves, looking curious, but not enough to slow their pace to the dining hall.

Pax peeled off, doing his best to look like any of the other students trying to make the most of their break. When he reached Incedis’ office building, he kept his head down and walked quickly as if he had somewhere to be.

His knock on Incedis’ office was answered immediately.

“Get in here and don’t speak.”

Frowning at the unexpected instructions, Pax stepped inside. Delectable smells made his mouth water, reminding him he hadn’t eaten since their early morning roust to help the city. He quickly shut the door, only to freeze when he noticed the still figure seated in a chair with a dark sack of cloth over their head.

His mouth fell open in surprise, and he looked to Incedis. Not only was the new person unexpected, but Pax had hoped for privacy to ask Incedis for updates on the war. How had the rebels taken another city? Were there going to be more? Had he heard news about the new base being built in the ruin? When could they all leave and head there?

“Not a word.” Incedis held up a warning finger and put a stop to the barrage of questions running through Pax’s thoughts. “Grab some food while I explain what we’re going to do.

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Pax hardly looked at the platter of food set on a side buffet as he kept glancing at the person sitting calmly in the chair. Pax realized the person was still young, making it difficult to tell gender. The height and hint of muscles suggested a teenage boy, but there was a gauntness that he suddenly recognized.

Despite wearing a clean tunic and pants, the boy’s clothing hung over a frame that didn’t have the fullness of someone with access to regular, filling meals. His hands clasped together tightly in his lap had dirt ground into the creases that suggested an ineffective attempt to clean them. His shoes were a size too big, with multiple layers of socks that, combined, were barely as thick as the single pair Pax wore.

The plate of food sat in Pax’s hands, forgotten. Unexpectedly seeing the boy wrenched him back in time, making him realize what he looked like just a few short months ago. Now that he was paying attention, he could see the tension trembling through the boy’s body as if he was a single trigger from springing into motion and racing out of the room.

Remembering the ache of genuine hunger, Pax realized how ludicrous it was for Amil to claim to be starving earlier. They all knew better, but had somehow forgotten the clenching beast of true hunger that drove a person to insanity to do anything to make it stop.

This boy in front of him hadn’t forgotten.

Pax turned back to Incedis with a look that demanded an explanation. How could he eat his plate of food with the boy just sitting there under a hood? The smells must be driving him insane.

Incedis must have read his thoughts on his face, because he immediately looked apologetic. “He has already eaten his fill, and I promised to have his latest arrest expunged. As a bonus, he’ll get a place to sleep during bad weather and a daily package of food for three months.”

Pax held Incedis’ gaze. That was hardly enough, though the boy probably thought he’d stumbled upon some rich man to exploit.

“It was all he’d accept.” Incedis looked a bit flustered.

“I’d take all th’ coin ye want to give me.” The boy finally spoke, his voice full of the streets.

Incedis shot an irritated look at the boy he couldn’t see through his dark hood. “I meant, he wouldn’t accept a place in one of the work homes we’ve been sponsoring.”

“Those places’ll grab you up and never let you go. I’m not making it easy for the guards to find me.”

Incedis opened his mouth to object and then stopped himself with a quick shake of his head. “In any case, friends recommended our young boy here, and he has agreed to help us out today for a fair compensation.”

Now Pax was just confused. The smell of the fried meat pockets he’d loaded onto his plate tugged at his attention. He pushed one into his mouth and sat down as he chewed. Having his mouth full was the easiest way to keep from asking Incedis all the questions he had. Obviously, the hood and Pax not speaking were measures to keep their identities secret.

Incedis nodded in approval before handing a note over to Pax. Pax read over it, his eyes going wide and his pulse quickening at the information. He looked up at Incedis with a question in his expression. Were they really going to do this?

Incedis nodded. “And now is the best time. Campus will be deserted after lunch, and everyone with any authority is extremely busy right now. We’ll have plenty of time.”

Pax looked over at the boy with fresh interest. According to the note, he was an unawakened street kid with a talent for thievery. He wasn’t against being paid to be a test subject for experiments with mana. It helped that he really didn’t want to spend time in jail with news on the street that this year’s Awakening might happen months early.

And the experiment mentioned in Incedis’ note? He wanted Pax to experiment with using his various elements to Awaken the boy’s class.

“Here’s the list of steps for the experiments.” Incedis took the original note back, making it burst into flame before handing a new one to Pax.

“Hey, what’s burning?” The boy turned his head, sniffing the air through his hood and moving in nervous movements that made Pax expect him to jump up and run at any moment. “You promised this wouldn’t hurt me. I didn’t agree to being burned or anything weird. Got it?”

“Just burning a note with information on it. And don’t worry. This is just working with internal mana, nothing that will hurt you.”

“Yeah, and you need a kid that is old enough to Awaken, but hasn’t yet. I got it the first time. Just don’t step over the line. Got it?”

“Got it,” Incedis said as he stood up from behind his desk. “We’re going to get started now. You’ll feel us place our hands on your head to begin the testing. I expect it will be boring for you. We’ve got a bunch of steps to test one by one. Let us know when you get tired or need a break. There’s more food, and I’ve got a small privy off the office here.”

The boy patted his stomach before saying. “I could probably eat again soon. I’ll let you know.”

Pax almost laughed at Incedis’ surprised expression, guessing the boy had already inhaled a lot of food. It was a skill every street rat developed. Cram as much food in when it was available, because the future held no guarantees. The only trouble was when the body rejected too much binging. He’d make sure the boy only got small amounts while they worked, to give his body time to handle it.

Incedis waved him over impatiently. Pax stood and read at the experiment list as he moved toward the boy.

* Report and record findings between each step in order to adjust plans for each step.

* Using your light mana, attempt to use your Mana Sight to see inside the unawakened.

* If successful, search for any hints of mana.

* If mana is found, try to interact with it. If none is found, skip to the next step.

* Send small probes of single elements inside the unawakened to see the effects. Start with light mana, then move to the four primary elements, one at a time. Do not use secondary elements for this experiment.

* Begin combining elements two at a time and work your way up to using all four elements together with light mana to test if Awakening is possible.

Pax was glad for the list. He only had vague plans of how to go about testing his idea, but his mentor had not only found him a test subject but come up with a logical sequence of steps to take. A new excitement filled him. If he could figure this out, he could help Awaken all the Viper littles back in Thanhil while keeping them out of the hands of the guards and the masters eager for more indentured.

Pax triggered his Meditation as he moved behind the boy’s chair and saw his muscles tense with awareness.

“Our tester is going to put hands on your head.” Incedis kept his voice low and reassuring. “You should experience no pain. If you feel any discomfort at all, say something, or just raise your hand, and we’ll stop immediately. Understand?”

The boy’s covered head jerked in a quick nod as he blew out a nervous breath.

Pax felt his nerves calm as he circulated his elements. The responsive energy grounded him and put him firmly in control. With his own nerves trying to surface, he pulled up a small thread of light mana before giving Incedis a nod as he placed his hands on the boy's head.

“You might feel our tester’s energy pushing into you. It is completely safe and if you feel much of anything, please do your best to be open.”

“Got it,” the boy muttered, his shoulders relaxing as he forced his breathing to slow.

Pax closed his eyes, triggered his Mana Sight and, for the first time, looked inside a boy who’d never been Awakened.