Isyd and Neaht were alone seated in the front rows of the auditorium whereas the rest of the Pupils stood on the rostrum. The class of Arts: Basic Applications was taking place and Tutor Milwyk had organized another of his friendly competitions. The only reason why Isyd wasn’t standing next to his fellow classmates was that Tekla had detained him with her usual antics and he had shown up late and decided to sit that one out. Even though nobody said a word, Isyd suspected it had been welcomed with a certain relief from his peers; it was quite disheartening to knowingly compete for second place at best. With Isyd out of the race, it would be fairer.

The competition had followed the habitual structure Tutor Milwyk was fond of: testing the Balance, Concentration and Visualization of the different [Spells] they had learned in class. The goal was to measure the progress of the Pupils since the last competition and Isyd was baffled at how deplorable the results were. For one thing, Olav Kazkan and his gang as well as two other Pupils had not even bothered showing up. This meant that the class was only at two third of its usual number. From this, only three Pupils managed to pass the different tests, namely Jadwia, Boshena and Kewin. The rest of the Pupils did not appear particularly bothered by the fact that they failed to perform a simple [Earth Spell] or that they still couldn’t solve a Balance puzzle. A group of five girls were leaning against the blackboard, giggling and paying no mind to what the Tutor was saying, two others were exchanging conspiratorial whispers with three of their male peers. The worst was that Tutor Milwyk did not address it in any way.

“I want to remind you that I am always available for answering any questions you may have about the classes,” Tutor Milwyk said. “Please, do not be discouraged by the results of today, the important thing is that you are all aware of the progress you made!”

Isyd exchanged a baffled look with Naeht. There had been no progress! Or at least, no significant ones and the semester was approaching its end. Isyd was well aware that he was surrounded by students and they were still of the 1st Opening, but even with that in mind, after almost five months spent in the Academy, he expected them to be more… skilled. Instead, not only Tutor Milwyk but also all the other Tutors were cuddling the Pupils and telling them how great they were doing.

He didn’t want to get ahead of himself, but he was starting to be a bit worried. If this was the level expected from future Artysta of one of the most prestigious schools of the Commonwealth, it didn’t bode well for the War.

“Now, I want to conclude today’s class with a true test to decide the winner of the competition. Your work today was more impressive and I want you to be proud, Young Boshena, Young Kewin, and Young Jadwia! Still, there is always more than can be done. The point of this class is to give you the tools necessary so that you can solve any problem you encounter with the Arts. In that spirit, I will present you with a simplified situation and I will ask you to react to it. Does that make sense? Yes? Perfect, then let us begin! They will need some room, so please give them space.”

The disqualified Pupils left the rostrum and the three finalists stood as far apart as they could. Now, even the inattentive students were paying attention as they noticed Tutor Milwyk raising his staff.

“Please keep in mind that I have everything under control and that I would not let anyone be hurt,” he said. “Now the situation is the following: you are faced with misdirected [Spell], a [Fire Tornado] is approaching you and you must stop it right there and then. What would you do?”

Tutor Milwyk waved his staff and three columns of fire burst forth. 2 meters high, the fires were immediately taken by swirling winds that made them roar, drowning Naeht’s and the Pupils’ exclamation of awe. Even Isyd stood straighter in his seat, though he was more worried about the damages to the floor tiles this kind of [Spell] could do than about the safety of anyone involved.

Both Kewin and Boshena had leapt back in shock, eyes wide, but Jadwia stood firmly on her feet, wand raised and a stern expression on her face. Another wave from the Tutor and the tornados began moving toward their target. Boshena was the first to spring into action. With a trembling hand, she quickly cast the simplest [Spell] than came to her.

“[Blow]!”

Her [Spell] blinked and a sudden gale of wind blew toward her [Fire Tornado]. She probably intended to repel the [Spell] away but upon impact, the tornado seemed to inflate instead. It roared and grew threefold, singeing the ceiling in passing and causing Boshena to yelp. Then the fire suddenly subdued as if running out of fuel and the tornado dissipated.

Jadwia was trying to cast a [Spell] as well but it kept on collapsing. Her lips were moving frantically as if she wanted to will it into being.

“[Water Spear]!”

Finally, her [Spell] worked. However, from her wand only a thin jet of clear water sprung. It sizzled against the fire but did nothing to stop it before suddenly drying up. Jadwia just stood there and watched her wand, too dumbfounded to jump out of the way. Fortunately, as it grew closer, the [Fire Tornado] finally stopped on its track before subduing and warping into a floating ball of fire.

Kewin didn’t seem to have much chance, or at least at first. He eyed the approaching tornado transfixed. When he began casting, his movements were quick and precise. Isyd noticed that contrary to Jadwia and Boshena, Kewin had not jumped to the simplest [Spell] that came to his mind, but instead, he was crafting one. It took him two trials, but eventually, he launched his [Hex] wordlessly.

Nothing appeared. Instead, the [Spell] simply shone in the air between him and the tornado. When the two [Spells] came into contact, the winds of the tornado were suddenly snuffed out. A gust of wind blew past him, ruffling his uniform and his hair and the fire crackled briefly before disappearing as well.

The classroom exploded with applause and Kewin let out a sigh of relief and gave a timid smile.

“Well, I think we just have found our winner of the day!” Tutor Milwyk said. “You three were exceptional and I want to take the time to discuss your attempts, beginning with you, Young Boshena. Tell us what you did.”

The young woman was fretting with her blond hair to make sure that it hadn’t been singed. “I tried to push the tornado back. It was the first thing that came to mind, but I didn’t expect it to explode as it did…”

“Yes, your idea was sensible, at least from an instinctive point of view. However, you encountered something that many Artysta have to learn to play around: Resonance! Resonance is the situation when the interactions between two [Spells] cause them to amplify one another. My [Fire Tornado] was a combination of Fire and Air Essence and therefore it is how the Grace will be expressed. Your [Wind Spell] was also built around the Air Essence, therefore when your [Spell] met mine, it gained another source of ‘Air Grace’ to draw upon. In other words, you provided an additional source of fuel to further aliment my [Spell] and since mine was sturdier than yours, the [Fire Tornado] was the one to go into Resonance.”

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“Does that mean the same thing would have happened if I had used a [Fire Spell] instead?” Boshena asked.

“In some cases, yes! In all honesty, Resonance is a bit more complicated than I make it sound. It depends a lot on the Balance of the [Spells] invoked, their Openings, their Concentration and so on… The point I am trying to make isn’t that you cannot use a [Wind Shield] to protect you from a [Wind Spell], but simply that you should be wary of it and perhaps consider another Essence to use. Moreover, it is not like Resonance is always a detrimental thing, to the contrary! Artysta learn how to take advantage of it to make their [Spells] more powerful or last longer. Look no further than the Lightspheres we all use; they are a perfect example of Resonance harnessed! Does that make sense?”

The Pupils nodded in unison and Tutor Milwyk next approached the fireball that was still floating in front of Jadwia. The young woman was staring down at it as if it was the sole reason why her [Spell] hadn’t worked.

“Young Jadwia, could you please what you did?”

“I tried to extinguish the [Fire Tornado] with a [Water Spell]. I thought… well I thought water was good against fire, but I guess I was wrong…”

“No, you weren’t wrong, your logic is correct, Young Jadwia! The Ever-Burning Fire mirrors the Ever-Quenching Water, so a [Water Spell] is indeed the best counter to a fiery one. However, you made a mistake common even for full-fledge Artysta, that is you forgot to consider the presence of Water Essence in your surroundings. In the presence of three [Fire Spells] such as my [Fire Tornado], the Water Essence in the room has been depleted, and that is without mentioning the Resonance of Boshena’s [Spell]. This is why you struggled to cast your [Water Spell] and why it was so weak.”

Jadwia glanced around and met Isyd’s eyes. Hadn’t he said something similar once? She let her shoulders slump and closed her eyes. God, she was such a fool!

“Finally, we turn to our winner of the day, Young Kewin! Please, describe what you did!”

“Well…er… I tried… I was trying to stop the tornado and I knew that the main Essence used was the Air so I searched for a way to counter it…” Kewin said, his ears turning red. “The [Hex] I cast was supposed to do that; it was to take the Air Essence and redirect it away from the Fire. I wasn’t sure it would work, to be honest…”

“Well, you can be proud of yourself, Young Kewin, because your [Hex] worked as well as you could have expected. In fact, the method you use is brilliant because it is one based on an actual phenomenon called ‘sink points’! It consists of redirecting the Grace away from a [Spell] and dispelling safely into another [Spell]. Did you know about that before today, Young Kewin? No? Well, the fact that you came up with it on your own is further proof of your talents! Congratulations, Young Kewin, your work is appreciated!”

The Tutor turned to the rest of the class. “This marks the end of today’s session; the class is dismissed! Good work everyone!”

Jadwia remained behind as some of the Pupils approached Kewin to felicitate him and ask him questions. The boy seemed uneasy to be the centre of attention, but despite that, he tried his best to answer. Finally, Jadwia noticed Isyd leaving his seat and approaching Kewin once most Pupils had left the class. Strangely, the air around him seemed to shimmer under the sunlight, and it wasn’t the first time Jadwia noticed it. Blinking it away, she approached the two young men.

“Congrats, Kewin!” she told him with a smile, though she had a hard time keeping it on her lips.

“I was just lucky…” Kewin said. “Plus, Isyd wasn’t taking part, so you know…”

“Do not say that,” Isyd said. “Your win of today is yours alone and well-deserved. Do not feel the need to compare yourself to me or anyone. Be proud of what you did and keep up the good work. Before you know it, you’ll be a talented Apteyk!”

“Ah, well… I changed my mind about that… I’m not interested in becoming an Apteyk anymore…”

“What? But… you wanted to join the White Flowers, didn’t you?” Jadwia said.

“I talked with my father and we decided that it wasn’t for me…”

“Why not? You are talented, Kewin,” Isyd said. “You would make a good Apteyk. We will need good Apteyka in the future.”

“Well… It’s just…”

“I actually wanted to talk to you about that, Young Kewin,” Tutor Milwyk suddenly said. He had been cleaning the classroom and only now approached his three Pupils. “I had heard from my colleague Tutor Tchepwa – she is the sponsor of the White Flowers – that you are receded your application to her Ring.”

“I did, Tutor. I am sorry for the waste of time. I… changed my mind.”

“Well, it is unfortunate, but I suppose it is best that you are sure of your choice in the end. However, I cannot help but notice that it means you are still Ringless. It is not something I recommended, you see,”—he gave a pointed look to Isyd—“so I would like to personally invite you to join the Cerulean Feathers, the Ring I am the sponsor of. I suspect you will be a great addition to our ranks! What do you say?”

“I… I am flattered…” Kewin stammered. “Yes… I would like to join you!”

“Perfect! I will go with you through the proper channel to make sure everything goes smoothly. Well, now that I think about it, Young Jadwia also recently joined our ranks. She could guide you through it.”

“I can’t! I… er… I just remembered I have something…” Jadwia suddenly said. She walked back and picked up her satchel, her hand slightly trembling. “I’m sorry, Kewin, and congrats for… your win. Thank you, Tutor, for today’s lecture.”

And with that, she was out of the room. She walked back to her room a bit in a daze.

Kewin would join the Cerulean Feathers. Tutor Milwyk had invited him personally...

The same Ring she had struggled to even have an interview for the chance of joining them. Perhaps I should also start acting timid and socially awkward to garner sympathy from the Tutor…, she thought cynically.

The moment the thought crossed her mind, Jadwia regretted it. She was being unfair and bitter. Kewin deserved to be part of the Cerulean Feathers. He was a hard worker and diligent and talented, and today’s competition was the best evidence of that.

She was the one who didn’t deserve to be where she was.

Jadwia entered her bedroom and slammed the door closed behind her. She dropped her satchel full of her syllabi on her bed and leaned against the bedpost. On her desk laid a pink letter bearing a familial seal. She regretted not taking it with her as she left this morning to throw it away. From where it was, the unopened letter seemed to taunt her. It was a reminder that she was a fraud. She was an imposter that was simply pretending to be learning the Arts.

It wasn’t for lack of trying. Jadwia was well aware of her efforts; she was working hard, studying every night and practicing at any chance she got. Looking at the larger picture, she knew that she was one of the best in her class. After all, others had failed the basic test of Tutor Milwyk whereas only she, Kewin and Boshena had passed. But it didn’t matter to her if others had failed, she simply couldn’t afford to. Not with all the effort she put in.

What more could she do?

Jadwia straightened up and picked up the letter and crumpled it in her fist. She let out a long sigh and threw back her shoulders. In the end, if her efforts were not enough, she just had to do more. She would work even harder and not think about her failures and what they could mean. She would prove to herself and the rest of the world that she deserved her place within the walls of the Academy.

She wouldn’t need to wait long for that. Jadwia eyed the Sun’s position through her window. She still had time but she had to prepare. She had received a convocation from her Ringleader and she had to get ready for it.