(Mallea)
“And as you can see, there’s a small hole in the heart of the dagger for the flying serpent fang. Thanks to the nature of my desired arcane isotope, bronzinide, the venom will be pushed toward the tip of the blade. Additionally, because the venom produced will be proportionate to the user's magic factor, petty thieves won't be able to use it for assassinations if it's stolen,” Mallea concluded her presentation with applause from the class.
Mrs. Ansom pinched her chin with one hand and scribbled on parchment with the other. She’d repeated the same process after every presentation. Mallea’s presentation was the final one of the day, and only six projects had been approved. None had been from the new red or orange hammers selected from other cities.
"You said you already possessed two flying serpent fangs?” Mrs. Ansom asked, resting her chin between her fingers in an indecisive glare toward the concept dagger.
“Yes, Miss,” said Mallea, her heartbeat racing over the violet hammer’s indecision.
“Very well, the guild will lend you some bronzinide for this project, enough for two daggers. Don’t disappoint us. Class adjourned.”
Mallea clasped her hands together in thanks. She tried to remain calm for her mentor and peers, but she was bursting on the inside. Mallea could finally work with arcane metals after her long hours of studying.
“After class, you’re all expected to meet in the grand courtyard,” said Mrs. Ansom. “Every smith is obligated to attend the warrior’s arcane aptitude test.”
Smiths and warriors were inseparable in Solluna. Most essential activities for one involved the other, and the arcane aptitude test was a perfect place for skilled smiths and warriors to find another. Mallea didn’t care about that aspect. She’d already found her warrior. She just wanted to support Asher and Safreya. Of course, part of her was also curious to see Iliastyr Dusk's result.
Later that day, after Mallea had been given her two daggers worth of magic-conducting bronze, she made her way to the Solluna’s central guild hub. The giant cobblestone circle hosted hundreds of skilled warriors and smiths, each anxiously awaiting the warrior's current magic factors.
“Hey! Mallea!” Asher yelled from the crowd, Safreya waving beside him. They stood next to Kylie Novasca and Iliastyr Dusk, both clad in leather armor from archery practice.
Mallea hadn't yet met Kylie Novasca, the famous novadancer. Few others in their late teens had half her accomplishments in one guild, but she excelled as both a warrior and a bard.
The other three welcomed Mallea to the group with a smile. Kylie, however, was the odd one out. Her expression was of trepidation, like a griffiness approaching a rival female of its species. Mallea was puzzled until she took a closer look at Kylie's eyes and how they nervously shifted between Asher and Mallea. So, that’s what she’s worried about, Mallea thought, making sure to contain any embarrassing giggles. Honestly, teenagers are such simple creatures. She just needs to know that I’m not encroaching on her territory.
“Kylie Novasca, right? I’ve heard all about you from Asher,” Mallea said as harmlessly as possible. “He’s a friend and colleague of mine. I’m Mallea Thorgil, his blacksmith.”
The women’s expressions communicated thousands of words. Iliastyr and Safreya, who understood the unspoken language, watched in amusement. Meanwhile, the clueless Asher wondered why everyone had gone so quiet.
“Nice to meet you, Mallea,” Kylie said as her eyelids lowered into calmness. “It’s nice to meet such a good friend of Ash’s.”
Their staredown complete and positions established, the young women waited for the arcane aptitude test with the others. A violet member of the bard’s guild pranced onto a wooden platform. He brandished a steel drum in one arm and a wooden stick in the other. He beat a quick tune into the drum, the sound amplified by some sort of arcane metal. The crowd was immediately silenced.
“Hear me, one and all!” The bard yelled. “Welcome to the arcane aptitude test! Administering the test this year is the diamond hammer himself: Johannes Leverett!”
A middle-aged man, his long black hair and beard sprinkled with silver, took his place on the stage. His leather tunic was adorned with a diamond hammer badge. Mallea exhaled a breath of amazement, like when watching fireworks or the grand finale of a bard's play. She’d heard of the man in her aunt Desmia’s stories, but Johannes Leverett had always been a creature of legend to her. Now her aunt’s mentor, the most skilled blacksmith in the world, was as real to her as Asher and Safreya.
“Hello all, and welcome to this year’s arcane aptitude test,” said Leverett, “today, we’ll be using a crystal that glows brighter depending on your arcane energy. If you don’t perform well, don’t worry! This is just for smiths to see where you are right now; a person’s magical ability can grow over time. We’ll be starting with our greatest warrior family, the Setrics! Please line up: Ursa, Asher, Varis, Nesse, Frieda, Bjorn, Clemont, Katrin, Nadia, and Vladimir.”
He… included Asher with the other Setrics? Mallea wondered. Asher stood stunned, in disbelief that the capitol recognized him in such a way.
"Ash, that's amazing!" Kylie said, gripping Asher's shoulders, "Berin's already starting to think of you as a Setric."
"Don't give my father credit for my idea," joked a voice behind the group. Kylie and Mallea turned to see an imposing figure who was not much older than them and Asher. Safreya, less than half the man's size, stepped back in a startled panic. The young man ran his hand through his blood-red hair, embarrassed by his intimidating appearance. "Sorry, it's really nice to meet my cousin's friends. I'm Vladimir. Vladimir Setric. So, Asher, you coming?"
(Asher)
Asher followed Vladimir's lead and lined up beside his nine cousins. He’d already met Berin’s three children and his older cousin Bjorn, but the others were new faces for him to memorize. He didn't dislike Varis and fully trusted Vladimir, but the other seven Setric children were his enemies as far as he was concerned. The eldest Setric child had said it himself; Asher was only standing beside the Setrics because of Vladimir's will.
Assuming that we were called by rank, Ursa is the only Setric beneath me, Asher thought, glancing at the young girl beside him. She couldn’t have been older than Ashleigh, but the youngster proudly wore her red blade badge. Merely being in a guild was an honor at that age.
Most of Asher's Setric cousins were yellow and green rank in multiple warrior guilds, well above average for teens. Vladimir stood alone as the only under-20 Setric with a blue ranking. Rumors said he was up for promotion to violet, depending on how the arcane aptitude test went.
“I’m starting,” grunted the brutish Bjorn, barging ahead of the others. The arcane aptitude test was held long enough into the night that even the slightest differences in the crystal’s illumination would be apparent. Asher would soon know how he measured up to his cousins.
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Bjorn picked up the crystal and began to channel his arcane energy. The crystal lit up brighter than a burning lamp, illuminating the faces of the young Setrics. It was an impressive result.
Ursa created a tiny spark that only lit up her own face, as expected for someone so young. Varis went next, unable to match half of Bjorn’s illumination. Asher watched as the Setrics around his age went one after another, trying and failing to match Bjorn's light until only three remained. Asher, Nadia, and Vladimir approached the crystal.
“I didn't tell Father to have you test with us so that you could flop,” Vladimir told Asher with a teasing smile, “make me proud, Cousin.”
“He’s not part of the main branch; I’d be shocked if he even matched young Varis,” Nadia said with a sneer. Her brother waved her off. None of the other eight Setric children had a glint of anticipation in their eyes. Not even Varis believed in Asher. However, Vladimir's wild eyes and hopeful grin encouraged the outcast Setric.
Asher had become the man of the house at a young age. His mother was often busy working, so he practically had to raise his younger siblings on his own. Asher had never had someone to look up to. He'd never had someone above him he needed to make proud. Asher knew the perfection he demanded of himself wasn't attainable yet, so he settled for another standard: his older cousin's pride.
Asher approached the crystal, ignoring Nadia’s comments. “I’ll do my best, Vlad; thank you,” he told his cousin with a smile.
Asher cradled the crystal in his hands. The resulting light was far more brilliant than any lantern, illuminating the platform and nearly a fifth of the entire central hub. Bjorn let out an embarrassed grunt, livid that his record had been passed.
“Your turn, cousin,” Asher told Nadia.
Nadia huffed, striding toward the crystal. Vladimir nudged Asher, both boys giggling over Bjorn and Nadia’s frustration. “You made me proud,” Vlad whispered, putting an arm over Asher's shoulder. “I knew you were a real Setric.”
It was finally time for the second oldest Setric of her generation. Nadia’s grasp lit the crystal even brighter than Asher's, covering over a third of the capital’s center. Asher’s older cousin returned with a nasty grin, silently taunting Asher over her result. Asher was impressed and a bit disappointed that his record had only lasted one round. However, he was also excited. He had a realistic goal in front of him now, the next Setric he wanted to surpass.
“Don’t look too smug, sister,” said the confident Vladimir, “you still haven’t beaten my result from when I was twelve.”
From when he was… what? Asher thought. Nadia had the best illumination so far and by a considerable margin. What is Vlad talking about? Twelve? Are people even allowed to join guilds at twelve?
Vladimir held the crystal to the sky with a single hand. The ensuing radiance was so bright that gazing at it would resemble staring into the sun. Instead, Asher looked far out to the area that it had illuminated. The light's range spanned far beyond the central hub. The entire capitol was enveloped by a blinding light. Vladimir's magic even expanded to the Sollunan forests.
“It’s unfair, isn’t it?” Varis said, walking between Nadia and Asher. “You’re looking at the future diamond lance. My brother doesn't seem real sometimes.”
“Erm… Ehem,” Johannes Leverett coughed. Even the diamond hammer was baffled at Vladimir’s display. “Well, thank you, Setric family. I'm clearing Varis, Nesse, Bjorn, and Asher Setric to use magic weapons in combat and promotion for Asher Setric to advance to yellow rank. And Vladimir… I recommend you for promotion to violet rank. Congratulations.”
Asher was far too excited to be jealous of Vladimir. Yellow rank already! That’s me! He thought with a grin. And I was cleared to use magic weapons. I still have a long road ahead of me, but the road is illuminated now. I know where I'm headed.
The Setrics returned to their groups, and the arcane aptitude continued with the remaining warriors. Safreya stood on the balls of her feet, elevating just enough to tussle Asher’s hair. Mallea and Kylie also joined the Mazgrove huddle, placing hands on Asher's shoulder as they celebrated. Even Iliastyr lightly applauded his roommate's result.
“Look at you! My mentor cleared me to work with magic metals today, too. Our dream is getting closer by the day,” Mallea said.
“That’s amazing, Mallea! Look at us, just a couple of kids from Mazgrove!” Asher and Mallea reached in for a hug. Then, noticing the single raised eyebrow on Kylie’s face, settled for a handshake.
Young guild members went one after the other, but it was painfully obvious why the Setrics were treated differently in Solluna. After dozens had gone, the top three results remained Asher, Nadia, and Vladimir. Eventually, Leverett called Kylie to the crystal. Asher wondered how he and Nadia compared to his childhood friend.
Kylie took a deep breath before gently cradling the crystal. The immediate effect was around the size of Bjorn's light. However, unlike anyone before her, Kylie’s light slowly ramped up the longer she held the crystal. The light pulsed beyond Asher’s, covering almost a third of the central area. After a final push, Kylie’s magic pushed beyond Nadia’s record. By the time she stopped, she’d covered nearly the entire central area. It wasn’t even close to Vladimir’s light, but she was firmly in second place.
“What did you think?” Kylie asked as she returned to her group. “It takes me some time to ramp up, but pretty good, right?”
“Dazzling, as always,” Asher told his childhood crush. Kylie curtsied for the group with the elegance that one would expect from the novadancer.
“How regrettable, a side character stole my line,” Iliastyr joked. “Well done, Novadancer. So, sweet Safreya, who goes next from our little group? You or me?”
Sadly, Iliastyr's debut was delayed even further. Three selected from Juniper City, all warriors, were the next to be tested. After them was a pair of twins selected from Saturs. Asher was proud of Solluna's territories. The selected were performing on the same level or better than those raised in the capital.
Asher counted everyone whose light surpassed his as more high-rankers began to test. No yellow badges exceeded him, and only a few greens had. Every single blue rank outshone him, but that was to be expected. Violet warriors and above didn’t take the aptitude test, as they were already mentors. If they had, they’d likely have embarrassed everyone other than Vladimir.
“Iliastyr Dusk,” called Leverett.
Poor Safreya, they still haven’t gotten to her, thought Asher, looking at the anxious bundle of nerves beside him. Well, everyone outside the Setrics has been randomly called. It could have happened to anyone.
“Well, the stage has finally been set for the lead,” said Iliastyr, striding toward the crystal.
Everyone looked onward at Iliastyr Dusk, waiting in anticipation for Solluna's greatest prodigy to reveal his magic. Vladimir, too, looked on. Nobody had even come close to his record. This would be the last person who could.
“How did Iliastyr do in previous years?” Asher asked Kylie.
Kylie’s head tilted in confusion. It looked like she was trying to wring the information out of her brain. “Huh… now that you mention it, he’s never done this. He was either sick or forgot to go in past years. He just made his own magic weapon, so he never needed to be approved by a blacksmith.”
That’s right, Iliastyr built Quinque himself. He can probably build any magic weapon himself, thought Asher. Knowing him, this is just for curiosity. He wants to see just how strong his magic really is.
Asher prepared himself for the entire kingdom to be lit up, the same way that Vladimir had. However, that wasn’t the case. The moment Iliastyr touched the crystal, it shattered into thousands of pieces.
Safreya gripped Asher and Mallea, who looked down to see all the color drained from her face. A shard of the broken crystal had fallen onto the back of her hand. Only Asher and Mallea noticed what happened when the crystal piece touched Safreya’s hand. The same way the original crystal had shattered when it touched Iliastyr’s skin, the smaller piece disappeared into tiny specks of light the moment it touched Safreya.
However, the crystal’s reaction to her body didn't surprise Safreya in the slightest. Instead, she was stuck looking up at Iliastyr, her lip trembling. While others were applauding Ilistyr’s brilliance, Mallea and Asher listened to the strange words that escaped the shell-shocked Safreya’s lips in a tremor-like whisper. “Nii’Bru, Miafinden, Nii’Bru," she cried, tears streaming down her face as she gazed at Iliastyr.