Cayto trudged down Avriya's Bay Street, shivering as the evening air bit his skin. For him it was one of those nights, another one of those nights where the stars and the moon felt colder and further away than they did before. It was one of those nights where the houses on the street, with their white wooden walls and their gray tiled roofs, judged him harshly through their glowing window eyes. It was one of those nights where the moon glared down at him and the stars laughed at him as they twinkled and even the wind whispered through the trees, throwing shade on Cayto as he walked on by:

Did you see the boy with those weird-looking circles under his eyes? A birch tree muttered to a big old oak. That's Cayto. He's a traitor and a stain on his family's name. Why would he throw away his high standing, his good prospects, and his only chance to take over Halifax Industries just so he could run away to Avriya? Dumb move if you ask me.

I know, right? The oak tree agreed. He's nothing more than a blundering, incompetent, useless idiot. Cayto should've jumped out of that van earlier and let himself get run over on the highway. The world would be a much better place without him.

But it wasn't the trees saying any of those things, it was Cayto’s own predictions of what everyone thought of him. And so, he slapped himself in the face. What the hell are you thinking?! He scolded himself. Stop worrying so much, it's making you look stupid! If either of your parents were here, they'd slap the shit out of you.

And so, Cayto walked on, his face bruised and stinging, in search of a phone to contact the Halifax residence with. He had to call his parents right away, because if he couldn't convince them that it was not his choice to suddenly dissapear, who knows what would happen to him? Because Cayto was away from everything, he could lose it all— his position as the next owner of Halifax Industries, his scholarship offers from multiple private universities in Thunderport and Skypoint, and the respect of everyone around him, including his parents, all because they'd think that he chose to run away from them. But Cayto would never abandon everything he had like that! He wasn't supposed to get abducted, nor was he supposed to be here. He had to escape Avriya as soon as possible, because his father had told him that in order to take over HI, Cayto had to electrify 50 vials a day for 7 years. There was no way he could do that at Avriya.

Cayto walked up to one of the houses on the block, knocking the door three times. The door opened, and a barefoot girl in a loose white t-shirt stood before him. "Hey," she greeted him. "Anything you need?"

"I need a phone," Cayto requested. "It's urgent."

"Here! Borrow mine," the girl responded, dropping a sturdy and heavy flip phone into Cayto's hand. "Take as much time as you need."

But just as Cayto was about to dial, he felt the phone fly out of his hands, knocking him back at full speed in the chest. He staggered a few steps backwards as the phone hit the porch with a loud clunk. “Hey, what was that for?" Cayto yelled as an angry-looking young man came charging to the forefront of the house.

The girl in the white t-shirt turned to face her housemate. “Just so you know, it's not nice to hit our visitors,” she reminded him. "And it's especially rude to make objects fly into them."

“Get. Away. From. Him.” The telekinetic warned the girl, a fearful look in his eyes. His hand shaking, he pointed at Cayto. “You should know who he is.”

The girl, wide-eyed and afraid, quickly grabbed her phone off the ground and stared at the young man. “But he needed to make that call.”

“Doesn’t matter. He's still one of the Halifaxes. This is what he has done.” The young man rolled up his sleeve to reveal a web of scars, smaller marks branching off larger marks like limbs on a tree. The marks of electrical currents.

"Sorry. I’ll be more careful next time,” The girl apologized as she quickly shut the door. Cayto rolled his eyes. That dude needs to get over himself, he thought. If he got injured by a shock tag, that's on him for failing to control his curse.

And so, Cayto walked on, going from house to house only to receive more hostile looks and slammed doors in his face. But despite this pattern, he was not ashamed of his family's work. No, these people should be ashamed of themselves, for failing to hold back their curses, for exiling themselves from Cloudgate, for choosing to live as deviants on some secluded island.

Cayto knew that being cursed was a choice and having an aura was not. Despite whatever that crazy ice girl may claim, nothing could change the fact that she was wrong about him being as cursed as she was. Curses are threats. They cause chaos and ruin lives. Cayto's lightning aura wasn't a curse, because unlike most aura-havers, he always had his aura under control, using it only for shock tags and nothing more. It was fine for him to use magic for that purpose and only that purpose because shock tags were important— they kept curses in check and generated revenue for Halifax Industries.

By the time Cayto walked down the block, nobody handed him a phone, and he was getting impatient. However, he wasn't going to give up just yet— he'd find another way to contact his parents for sure. But how? He already tried breaking past the wind barrier but it was too strong. He tried asking others for help, but was coldly dismissed each time.

Then Cayto remembered what Juliana said about Avriya earlier on the beach: "it is the last place where magic is not only legal, but actively taught." Actively taught. Did mages live here? Perhaps they were given some higher status and were allowed to leave Avriya? It wasn't an unlikely conclusion. The people on the van all looked like trained mages, and if they were able to infiltrate HACF, they probably were also allowed to leave Avriya. So if Cayto trained alongside these mages, then he'd get to know their weaknesses. He'd be given certain allowances, such as permission to leave the island, and then, when the opportunity was given to him, he'd escape as soon as possible. And if the mages didn't let him leave, at least Cayto would know how to fight back.

Of course, this plan was unappealing. Cayto knew he wasn't supposed to like doing this because he knew that using aura magic was wrong. However, it wasn’t like he was actually on Avriya's side. He was working against them, and once he got back to Cloudgate, everybody would know about Avriya thanks to him. No more hiding, no more secrets. If Cayto came back from Avriya with knowledge of its existence, and if he told the officials about it, his disappearance would be excused. The curses would be eliminated thanks to him, and he'd be proving that he wasn't a stain on the Halifax name despite what his mother thought of him.

After a few minutes of walking, Cayto found a bench to lie down on. It was cold and uncomfortable, and the armrests prevented him from stretching out. Cayto lay down on the bench and hugged his knees to his chest, willing himself to fall asleep. But he couldn't sleep. Not outdoors on a street bench, and not when the air was this cold and he had no mattress or blanket. And he definitely couldn't sleep with the overwhelming anxiety plaguing him.

What if everybody forgets me once I get home? Cayto thought. What if all of the work I've put into being good at what I do, everything I've done to prove that I was actually worth something— what if it was all for nothing?

***

"We're going to Avriya. Aren't you happy?" Ivan asked Skye as they waited at the bus stop. She nodded.

"Of course I am!" Skye declared. "Thank you so much, by the way. I don't know what I'd do without you—"

"Not so fast," Ivan reminded his sister. "I've gotten you this far, and our parents don't even know. You owe me."

"Oh." Skye's face fell. "What do I owe you exactly?"

"Your notebook," Ivan replied. "You know which one."

For a moment, a disconcerted expression crossed Skye's face. "Sure you don't just want me to do your laundry instead?"

Ivan shook his head. "Nope. I won't accept anything other than the notebook."

Suddenly the bus pulled over. "Oh look," Skye commented, taking the opportunity to redirect the conversation. "It's the bus. We should get on board."

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The Everson siblings entered the bus, located a pair of seats, and sat themselves down, but that didn't distract Ivan. "It's only fair you give it to me, after all I've done," he pressed. "You've always wanted to be a mage, haven't you? Now you are, but remember, this wouldn't be happening if I wasn't here to help you. So hand over the notebook, or else we're not going to Avriya."

Skye pulled her notebook out of her bag and threw it at Ivan's head. "Here! Take it!" She blurted. "You asked for it, you got it!"

Ivan winced, rubbing his head. "Ow. That was unnecessary."

Skye crossed her arms. "Totally was!"

Ivan flipped through the pages, an irritatingly self-satisfied look on his face. "Hmm, where should I stop?" He mused out loud before opening the book on a messy doodle of a creature with fins. "Oh, look. A fish man."

"That's a seal." Skye corrected.

"Nope. Fish man."

Skye slumped in her seat. "Why do you feel the need to do this?"

***

"Yay! We're here!" Skye announced as she and her brother stood at Silver Run's gates. "I don't know about you, but I'm super excited."

A woman with olive skin and lavender-tinted hair approached the gates. Skye recognized the woman as Avriya's main healer, Hyacinth. "Welcome back, Ivan!" Hyacinth greeted Skye's brother. "Oh, and welcome back, Skye. I've heard you wanted to learn magic?"

"Yeah, totally!" Skye exclaimed. "So where are these mage classes I've heard about?"

"They're starting really soon. For now you can wait by the fountain." Hyacinth gestured towards the fountain in Silver Run's courtyard. "The other students are there, so why don't you go talk to them? Maybe you'll make some new friends."

Skye laughed nervously. "Ivan, can you come with me? I don't think I can do this alone..."

Ivan nodded. "Will do."

"Thanks!— Oh, wait." Skye said, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Won't there be anything you'll expect in return?"

"Not this time," Ivan responded. "I'll help you with whatever you need."

The trio entered the courtyard, Skye and Ivan splitting off in one direction, Hyacinth in the other. Skye approached the fountain's edge, occupying a space between her brother and a stranger. Just as Skye was about to ask her brother if she could talk to the stranger, the stranger turned to her and spoke.

"Hey!" The stranger greeted, startling Skye. "My name's Nova."

Skye looked up at Nova and gave her a small smile. "Oh. Hey."

"I assume you must be new here?" Nova asked Skye. "Haven't seen you around before."

Skye nodded.

"That's so cool!" Nova exclaimed. "Are you signed up for the aura level evaluation by any chance?"

"Yeah she is," Ivan answered. He gave an exasperated half-smile towards Skye, one that could only remind her of the endless back-and-forth arguing between Ivan and herself. Skye remembered it all too well: she gave Ivan every reason why she should train at Silver Run Academy, and he gave Skye every reason why she shouldn't, but in the end they settled on a compromise: Skye would go to Avriya without the knowledge of her parents, eliminating Ivan's biggest concern, and Ivan would help her with the commute and cover up any knowledge of their location. But there was a catch— in exchange for his help, Ivan could demand whatever he wanted from his sister. Mainly chores.

Nova and Skye talked for a while, about Avriya, about auras and magic, about their own daily lives. Along the way Skye had picked up some new interesting tidbits of information about Nova: Nova had lived at Avriya for as long as she could remember, and has been training her aura, which gave her the ability to teleport, for at least three years. She frequently attended classes at Silver Run Academy to learn magic, and her instructor's name was Felix, or Mr. Everett as she called him. Nova was currently sharing a house with Aaron, a telekinetic with a history of getting into fights. Fortunately, Aaron had never really fought with her. "He's like my big brother," Nova stated. "He can be intense, and he doesn't trust anyone who isn't an aura-haver, but I don't think he's a bad person."

Skye shrugged. "All this hate and division, it's so frustrating. Why can't we just get along and accept that an aura, or a lack of one, does not define us?"

Soon enough, the clusters of people scattered across the courtyard began converging in one big group toward the exit. "I think the evaluation is about to start," Nova noted. "You should get going. I'm staying behind, so don't worry about me."

"Will do!" Skye assured Nova as she traveled to the courtyard's exit, disappearing into the crowd as it poured through the gates.

***

Skye looked around. She was standing in a field with a group of people, with Hyacinth at the front. "One, two, three…" she started, doing a headcount. She stopped at 19. "Good, I have everyone."

"Anyway, I'd like to introduce myself." Hyacinth continued. "My name is Hyacinth and I'm an instructor in aura combat. I am 26 years old and a regeneration healer. Welcome to our evaluation. The purpose of it is to test your level of competence with magic, which will be used to place you in a class based on your abilities. Do any of you have experience with using your aura?"

"I do," a certain dark-haired, purple-eyed boy responded. He looked abnormally sleep-deprived and all too familiar, more familiar than Skye would've liked him to be. The other students whispered:

"Isn't that Cayto?"

"Yeah. I've heard he got taken to Avriya against his will and isn't allowed to leave."

"Oh my god, he got kidnapped?"

"Not on purpose. But he definitely hates us. Bet he's looking at us and planning his revenge at this very moment."

"Y'all are that afraid of Cayto? I could easily take him in a fight."

"Shut up Collin. You know you ain't shit—"

"Enough!" Hyacinth yelled over the group. She turned to Cayto. "Cayto, right?" She asked him.

Cayto nodded. "Yes."

Hyacinth drew a check mark on her clipboard next to his name. "Good, I have you here. Follow me." She led the boy to a section of field further from the rest of the group as they and Skye watched attentively. "If you're unfamiliar with a skill or if you find it too difficult to replicate, please let me know," Hyacinth instructed. Cayto nodded. And so, his evaluation began:

"Straight line!" Hyacinth shouted.

Cayto shot a line of electricity in front of him.

"Crisscross!"

Fingers pointed, Cayto stuck both of his arms up in front of him, slightly crossing them while sending two overlapping streaks of lightning through the air. Upon completing this task, Cayto was breathing heavily, but his relief only lasted for a moment before Hyacinth started calling out more skills that were rapidly increasing in difficulty. Cayto's attempts to follow through were taking a visible toll on him.

At first Cayto was able to keep up, albeit not without exerting himself, but eventually, the sparks he was releasing were singing his sleeves, and the lightning wielder was staggering as if he could fall over at any moment. Even Cayto's own aura was failing to protect him from the constant stream of electricity he was forcing himself to release, making his hands and the rest of his body bleed. And yet, whenever Hyacinth asked him if he wanted to quit or decrease the evaluation's difficulty level, he'd always refuse.

"Cayto, your evaluation is over." Hyacinth reminded him, approaching the lightning-wielder.

"But… the static… shield?" Cayto gasped between breaths. "You… told… me… to make one."

"Don't bother with that. I need to get your injuries fixed first." Hyacinth said. "Wait here."

"Did… I… do… well?" Cayto asked, his voice weakening.

"You have potential," Hyacinth replied. "But when I said "do your best" I didn't mean "push yourself to the point of collapse." The healer placed her hands on Cayto's wounds, and a soft pink glow enveloped the affected areas. A moment later, her patient started looking a little less battered, but was still gasping for air.

"Boo!!" An aura-haver from the crowd yelled. "Why are you helping him?!" As if on cue, the rest of the crowd followed the aura-haver's example.

"Don't you know who he is?!" Another person shouted. "Don't waste your efforts on that piece of garbage!"

Skye stood back as the group took part in degrading Cayto in one way or another. It was painful for her to watch, because in truth, Skye was angry. But she didn't know if she was angrier at Cayto or the others on the field, because as much as she disliked him, here he was, already at his lowest, and everybody was kicking him down even further. One boy spat at Cayto, another kicked him in the face. There was a girl claiming that Cayto deserved to be bullied because of his previous contributions to Halifax Industries. Her sentiment was echoed by another person who said that Cayto should be left with his injuries so he would know how shock tags felt like. When Cayto stopped breathing, a few people cheered and laughed. The chants that followed and continued to grow in magnitude were so cruel and overwhelming, Skye felt like they were choking her: "Die!" "Die!" Die!"

Skye couldn't bring herself to join, as the mocking and taunting was much too merciless for her liking. But she didn't try to stop the crowd either, because in truth, she also disliked Cayto. So she stayed on the sidelines, not getting herself involved but not taking a stand, simply because Skye did not think it was worth drawing attention to herself for the sake of someone whom she didn't even like. But still, she thought it was strange that Cayto, producer of shock tags and next owner of Halifax Industries, would try to learn aura magic.

Why would Cayto attend Hyacinth's aura level evaluation in the first place? Skye wondered. And why would he push himself so hard? Did his views on magic change? Was he trying to prove something?

Hyacinth attempted to silence the crowd after she chased them away from Cayto. At once, the crowd dispersed, but the energy of pure, unfiltered, hatred continued to flow through it. Meanwhile, the boy was carried into the backseat of a white car and driven off. "Cayto is not dead. I checked." Hyacinth stated. "He is going to the infirmary, so don't you dare get disappointed if he turns out fine."

After Hyacinth retrieved her clipboard, the energy of the crowd ebbed. "I'm really disappointed with all of you," the healer reproached the group. "This is not how we act towards our fellow mages." Almost at once, the crowd hushed. Hyacinth waited, her eyes fixed in a cold stare, her lips a thin line. The silence penetrated each and every person on the field.

Then in an abrupt shift in mood, Hyacinth started smiling once again. "Anyway, we're continuing our evaluation!" She announced. "Skye, you're next."

Her head swimming with nervous excitement, Skye stepped up to join Hyacinth.