CHAPTER 97: 97: THE ACADEMY TEST VII

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The hour came. They reached the academy’s south yard gate. A small crowd had gathered already. New names stood in loose rows. Some talked in low voices. Some kept still and stared at the tall hall beyond the yard, as if staring could tell them tomorrow. A bell rang once. The gate guard lifted a hand.

"Token," he said to each person in turn.

John showed his slate token. The guard touched it and nodded. "Go in. Stand where the line leads. Spirits may attend. No flying above the heads. No tricks."

Fizz dipped in the air like a short bow. "No tricks," he said. "Only good looks."

They stepped inside. The south yard was a long rectangle of trimmed grass and packed paths. A low stage had been set at one end. Three fixed boards stood on the stage with chalk words already written on them. Two lantern poles stood near the corners. In the middle of the yard, a checker line had been painted on the ground, perhaps for drills or games. On the right side, a gardener had watered the hedge. A narrow strip of soil there was dark and soft where his bucket had soaked it.

John and Fizz found a place three rows from the front, a little to the left of the center line. Fizz kept low and still. He watched with bright eyes. John put his hands behind his back and eased his feet apart the way Gael did when listening to a foreman or a priest who could not say it in half the words.

More people came. A boy in a too-clean coat tried to make jokes and stopped when no one laughed. A girl with a scar along her jaw breathed slowly and looked at the stage like it was a wall she meant to climb. A man with gray in his hair stood alone and held his token as if it might fly away.

A door opened on the side of the hall. Four staff walked out and climbed the steps to the stage. One was an older woman in a plain blue robe with silver thread at the collar. One was a man with a short beard and hands stained with old chalk. The other two were guards who wore the academy crest on their sleeves. The blue-robed woman stepped forward.

"Good evening," she said. Her voice was not loud, but it carried clean to the back. "I am Master Hale. I ran the entry exam this season. I will say what the test is. I will tell you how it works. I will say what you must bring and what you must leave behind. The words will be simple. If you do not understand, ask the question now or tomorrow morning. Do not ask during the test, because no one will answer you then."

The yard went still.

"First," Master Hale said, and she held up one finger. "This is a three-step exam. Written theory. Practical work. Problem and wit. Some say the last is an ’intelligence test.’ We do not like that word. We test how you notice, how you choose, and how you solve when no one tells you which tool."

She turned and tapped the first board. The chalk there read:

Step One — Written Theory.

Time: Two hours.

Bring: One pen, one small bottle of ink, your token.

Paper is given. No books unless we provide it. No notes. No whispering.

Topics: mana flow basics; circle work terms; array safety; common ethics; simple law; reading a plan; reading a rune; simple count.

"You will answer questions," she said. "Some are short. Some ask you to explain. Some ask you to draw. We do not want poems. We want clear words and clean lines. We will grade the same day. If you pass, you go to step two. If you fail, you leave the yard and try again next year. There is no shame in leaving. There is bad shame in cheating. Do not cheat."

She tapped the second board. It read:

Step Two — Practical Work.

Time: One hour per group.

Bring: Chalk, simple string, your token, one clean hand.

No outside aid. No artifacts. No spirits in the ring unless the rule says.

Tasks: make a small stable circle; set a safe spark; move water from a bowl to a line without spilling; read a weak current; stop a small leak.

"We will watch how you stand and how you breathe," she said. "We will watch how you fail and start again. We care about clean work more than proud work. Do not rush. Do not talk to others. Do not harm others. If you pass, you rest and go to step three. If you fail, we speak to you and send you home with words you can use."

She tapped the third board. It read:

Step Three — Room of Thought.

Time: Twelve minutes.

Bring: Your token.

The room has: common things, small tricks, one answer or many that will work.

Rule: no force, no breaking, no shouting, no help.

Goal: show how you think. Show how you find what is needed.

"We put you in a small room. The room has objects you know from a kitchen, a road, a shop, a field, a river. A card on the wall has a simple problem. There is no magic required to solve it. There is no ban on using small magic if it is safe. We watch from the window. We do not speak. We will fail you if you break the room to beat the problem. We will pass you if you show your head is useful and your hands are kind."

She let that stand for a breath. Then she went on.

"Second," she said. "Rules. You were given a sheet with ten rules. Keep it in your pocket and in your head. Tomorrow you rest. The day after tomorrow is test day. On test day, eat breakfast that will stay in your stomach. Wear boots you can stand in. Come early. If you come late, we close the gate. We do not open it for late people. Not for begging. Not for bribes."