CHAPTER 94: 94: THE ACADEMY TEST IV

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When their turn reached the first table, the clerk held out a hand. She had ink on two fingers and a strand of hair that would not stay quiet.

"Name," she said.

"John," he said. "No last name."

She waited for more. Nothing else came. She wrote JOHN and left a short space as if a surname might grow there later.

"Age," she said.

"Seventeen," he said. "Eighteen soon."

"Place of birth," she asked.

He paused. He could have said the White estate and watched it land like a stone. He said "North quarter. Village," which was true enough to write and safe enough to leave.

The clerk looked up at Fizz. "And the contracted spirit."

"Fizz," Fizz said before John could answer.

The clerk’s pen paused. "Race," she asked. "Elemental, aerial, fire, beast, other."

Fizz cocked his head. "Yes."

John kept his face even. "Elemental. Aerial. Whatever you want me to be."

The clerk sniffed a smile and wrote ELEMENTAL, AERIAL. "Spoken language," she asked, half teasing.

"Better than yours," Fizz said.

"Fizz," John said, not looking at him.

The clerk smiled at the paper. She had heard worse.

"Letter of introduction," she said.

John took Sera’s letter from the inner pocket and set it on the table with two fingers. The seal was clean. The wax showed the temple mark clearly. The clerk checked the edge, checked the back, broke the seal with a thin blade, and read fast. Her eyes moved like someone counting coins. She nodded to herself. She wrote SERA, PRIESTESS and TEMPLE OF THE HEART on the form and slid the letter to the second clerk.

The second clerk wore round glasses and a careful frown. He read slower. He checked the signature against a small book of other signatures. He wrote something on the back and stamped both paper and letter with the academy mark. He looked up at John with a flat, fair gaze. "Circle," he said. "Verification."

He held up the crystal. Its pale color moved like fog inside glass. "Right hand on the base. No push. Let it taste your core. If you push, it will show it."

John put his palm on the base. He did not breathe deep. He did not make a face. He let the calm line inside his chest stay calm. The crystal brightened to a clear soft white. A ring of light formed under the surface. Then another one. Two rings. Both are stable. The clerk watched without drama.

"Circle two, not bad kid." he said. "Stable. Artifacts?" he asked, not looking up yet.

"None," John said. "Not in hand. Not now."

The clerk nodded. "Contracted spirits are allowed to attend the briefing. Not allowed to aid in exams unless the rule for the test says so. If the rule says no outside aid, the spirit waits outside. Break rules and the score is zero. Break rules twice and the door is closed."

Fizz started to open his mouth to say something. John said softly, "We heard."

The clerk lifted a brow, pleased by the simple answer. He set a slate token on the table. It had a number on one side and a small heart rune on the other. He added a narrow strip of paper with three lines.

"Token number is your registration number," he said. "Carry it. Do not lose it. Today before sunset, go to the south yard for the new names briefing. It lasts one hour. Tomorrow you rest. The next day is test day. Bring chalk, a pen, one book if you need a book, and your brain. Full mana. No blades. No carts. No excuses. If you need to ask a rule, ask today, not on test day."

He slid a small folded sheet across. "These are the rules. Read them. There are only ten. The words are simple. They are strict."

John took the token and the sheet. "Fee," he said. "Is there a fee today?"

The first clerk shook her head. "Registration is free. The exam has a fee only if you sit it twice. That is a warning and a kindness."

Fizz counted on his paw fingers and then gave up. "We should sit it once," he said. "It seems cheaper."

The first clerk did not laugh. She had learned not to reward jokes at the table. But her mouth bent. "Next," she called, and lifted her chin at the line behind them.

Elara stepped closer as they cleared the rope rail. "Done," she said.

"Done," John said, holding up the token.

She glanced at it and then at the paper. "South yard. Before sunset. Do not be late. They will lock the gate to teach you to watch the sun."

Fizz placed one paw over his heart. "We will treat the sun with deep respect."

Elara looked like a woman deciding whether to reply to that. She chose to ignore it. She turned and led them out the way they had come, past the porter, past the quiet trees, out into the street.

She walked two blocks in silence. Then she stopped and turned to face John, not quite at attention, but not relaxed either.

"Do you have a place to live," she asked.

"No," John said. "We came to the gate and then to the temple. We have not rented a room yet."

"Dorms are full. They always are, the week of exams," Elara said. "And even if they were not, you need a sponsor or coin in the right pocket. You have coins. You do not have the right pockets. A cheap tavern is better than the street. Come."

She took them south and west through lanes that changed from bright and wide to a little narrow and a little older. The stone was less smooth. The doors were more worn. There were more clotheslines here, more dogs sleeping like lumps, more men sitting on stools in the shade talking with slow mouths. It did not feel unsafe. It felt like a place where rent was counted and bread was counted and people counted small joys on purpose.