The winter morning mist at Silver Star Academy carried a biting cold. Thin frost coated the Vigil Training Grounds' cast-iron railings. The intermittent bursts of steam crystallized into fine icy granules on the ground, mixing with the sharp scent of ozone—a scent of strained vigilance. Today marked the first Phase Assessment after six months of entry, the Academy's initial sifting of its "Tier-One Potentials." Success meant possibly receiving the first dosage of the Initiation Elixir—a pale gold liquid containing a Loyalty Sigil, a key to advancement and a shackle of surveillance.
Elara Thorne stood in the assessment queue, frost clinging to her gray uniform collar. After six months, she still maintained her facade as a Tier-Two Soother. The gap in student tiers had widened: Cecilia Frostborne, leveraging family resources, was high Tier-One, her Aetheric Fluctuation nearly Tier-Two stable. Gideon Valerius, a Vigil trainee, had broken through to Tier-One Sensor; though his Rage Aether control was improving, he still had occasional lapses. Lionel Evans, with Elara's aid, remained a Tier-One Sensor in the Logistics Serfdom, responsible for equipment maintenance here. Across the railing, he mouthed the word "Steady," clutching a freshly calibrated Aetheric Monitor—he had lowered the sensitivity on the Sector 2 monitor this morning to prevent her Aetheric Fluctuation from being overly amplified.
The assessment was divided into two parts: theory in the morning, practical in the afternoon. The theoretical exam was held in a Tier-One classroom within the Weaver's Gallery. Pearlescent Aetheric Crystals illuminated the room in a harsh white light. The examination paper, covered in runes, lay on the stone tables, covering Aetheric basics, rune analysis, and Abomination countermeasures. Elara held her quill, letting the tip glide across the parchment. She knew the material intimately, supplementing her classroom knowledge with the 'Low-Tier Aetheric Diagnostics' from The Rotting Earth Codex. But she deliberately controlled her speed, avoiding overly deep theoretical derivations, only striving for accuracy in the basic questions, leaving two distinctively 'fuzzy' steps in the more complex problem sets. She knew 'cautious mediocrity' was safer than 'flaunting potential' under the Association's scrutiny.
"Thorne, your analysis on the 'Aetheric Breakdown Causes' is rather conservative," the proctor scanned her paper. "With your foundation, you could go deeper."
Elara looked up, offering a measured, convincing reluctance: "I… I was afraid of miscalculation. Better to be safe." An overly excellent score would invite a demand for 'in-depth Aetheric root testing,' something her Aetheric Camouflage Paste could never withstand.
The theoretical scores were posted on the bulletin board in the evening. Elara scored 78, placing her in the safe, middle-upper range—enough to not be dismissed, but not enough to draw deep scrutiny. Cecilia Frostborne was first with 92. She stood by the board, her gold hair gleaming coldly in the sunset, and she glanced at Elara's score with contempt: "Some people, six months in and still hovering in the middle. I don't know how they dare occupy a Seventh Spire seat."
Elara ignored her, focusing on the afternoon's practical test: Three-Node Aetheric Conduit Repair. The task required high stability, as she had only fifteen minutes of effectiveness left from the Aetheric Aid Paste she had applied that morning. She had to time it perfectly and leave calculated 'flaws' in the repair.
Three half-meter high simulated conduits stood in the center of the practical field. Elara drew Conduit No. 2. The examiner, Tier-Three Heart-speaker Mason, stood by, his crest cold, his finger clutching an Aetheric Perception Crystal: "Begin, and pay attention to Resonance stability after the node repair."
Elara drew a breath and applied a small bottle of Aetheric Stabilization Tincture—a compound from The Rotting Earth Codex that smoothed Aetheric Fluctuation but guaranteed a subtle break during deep Resonance. She deliberately made her Simulated Filaments move sluggishly, causing the Aetheric threads to almost re-tangle twice while repairing the first node, earning a frown from Mason.
On the third node, the Aetheric Aid Paste's effectiveness suddenly ceased; her Simulated Aether dimmed instantly. Mason's crystal glowed red. "What's happening? Why the sudden drop in Aetheric Fluctuation?"
"I… I got nervous. I couldn't control the Star Dust Sand energy." Elara quickly explained, grinding the half-piece of Star Dust Sand. Following the Codex's instruction that "Star Dust Sand must be co-used with Industrial Aether," she swiftly brushed her thumb against the conduit's outer wall—where a micro-dose of Industrial Aether Catalyst was hidden. The Industrial Aether Oscillation seeped in, stabilizing the Filaments. The third node was finally repaired.
The final step was the shallow Resonance. Elara timed the Stabilization Tincture's effect to wear off precisely as her gray Filaments linked with Mason's silver-white Filaments, causing a momentary, weak disconnection before quickly restoring. Mason pulled back his Filaments and checked his crystal: "Repair acceptable, but Aetheric stability is poor. You need to strengthen your basic training." He wrote 'Acceptable' on her sheet—exactly the result Elara desired.
Cecilia Frostborne was waiting at the exit, clutching a perfect score sheet. She looked at Elara's 'Acceptable' grade, her eyes full of suspicion: "Always like this. Just barely passing every time. I wonder what means she uses."
Elara ignored her. Just outside the field, Kaelan Blackwood's attendant stood with an exquisite wooden box. "Miss Thorne, Senior Kaelan asked me to deliver this to you." The box held three bottles of basic Aetheric Stabilizer. "He says the Initiation Elixir distribution is imminent. He wants you to stabilize your Aether so as not to affect the next stage of advancement." Elara uncorked a bottle and detected a subtle, distinct odor—the Tracking Powder Kaelan had mentioned. She realized Kaelan was controlling even the small details post-assessment.
The sunset cast long shadows across the practical field, like countless eyes watching her. She knew this assessment was merely a temporary reprieve; her days of walking on a knife's edge were far from over. In the distance, Lionel Evans was packing up the equipment. Seeing her look, he gave a discreet 'all clear' hand sign—he had already reset the monitor, leaving no trace of their sabotage.