The first strike came without warning.
Kael sensed it a heartbeat before it happened a tightening in the air, like the academy itself holding its breath.
"Down!" Lysar shouted.
The dorm wall exploded inward.
Stone shattered. Arcane wards screamed as crimson magic tore through them like wet paper. Kael rolled off the bed just as a blood forged blade embedded itself where his head had been moments earlier.
Smoke filled the room.
Then footsteps.
Five presences.
Trained. Coordinated.
"This is already past discipline," Lysar hissed, pulling a time-sigil into his palm. "This is an execution."
They emerged from the smoke wearing cloaks marked with faint House sigils Blood, Fire, and Light.
Unofficial.
Unrecorded.
Which meant one thing.
The Houses had sanctioned this.
Riven's voice cut through the haze, calm and venomous.
"You humiliated me in daylight, crestless. At night, we correct mistakes."
Blood magic crawled across the floor like living veins. Fire gathered behind another student, heat warping the air. Light condensed into blinding blades.
No instructors.
No rules.
Just death.
Running Is Not Cowardice
"Don't fight all of them," Lysar muttered urgently. "You'll burn out."
Kael knew he was right.
Authority was powerful but every use tore at him. He could already feel the pressure building behind his eyes.
He grabbed Lysar's wrist.
"Follow me."
They bolted.
Fire erupted behind them, scorching the corridor. Kael slammed his palm into a sealed emergency passage.
"Authority."
The door didn't open.
It ceased to exist.
They plunged into darkness.
Underground Warfare
The hidden tunnels welcomed them with cold stone and ancient silence.
But they weren't alone for long.
Blood magic slithered through cracks in the walls. Fire illuminated branching paths. Light cut through shadows.
"They're herding us," Lysar realized.
"Toward something."
A trap.
Kael skidded to a halt inside an old training chamber cracked pillars, shattered glyphs, and a dormant guardian circle etched into the floor.
He smiled grimly.
"Good."
Lysar stared at him. "You have a plan?"
"No," Kael said. "I have Authority."
Turning the Tables
The Blood House students struck first.
Kael raised his hand.
"Authority."
The blood magic froze then reversed, snapping back into its caster's veins. The boy screamed, collapsing instantly.
Fire roared toward Kael next.
Kael didn't block it.
He rewrote it.
The flames bent sideways, slamming into the Light House caster and detonating into blinding brilliance.
Only Riven remained.
Panting.
Bleeding.
Terrified..
"This power…" Riven whispered. "It's not magic. It's blasphemy."
Kael stepped forward slowly.
"You attacked me in my sleep."
The guardian circle beneath them suddenly ignited triggered by unstable mana.
The ancient construct began to awaken.
Lysar shouted, "Kael, stop! You're activating something old!"
Kael clenched his teeth.
Too late.
Interruption
Before the guardian could fully rise, the chamber froze.
Time itself locked in place.
A figure stepped out of the stillness tall, cloaked, face obscured by a silver mask.
A faculty member.
No… something else.
"This far is enough," the figure said calmly.
Riven collapsed, unconscious.
The masked figure turned to Kael.
"Your survival tonight was… permitted."
Kael's blood ran cold. "Permitted by who?"
A pause.
"By those who wish to see how far Authority can go."
The figure vanished.
Time resumed.
The guardian circle died.
Silence reclaimed the tunnel.
Aftermath
Lysar dropped to one knee, exhausted.
"That wasn't just a raid," he said shakily. "It was a test."
Kael stared at his trembling hands.
The Houses wanted him dead.
The faculty wanted him measured.
And The Null?
They wanted him unleashed.
Above them, Astraeus Dominion slept peacefully.
Unaware that its foundations had cracked.
Kael straightened.
"Next time," he said quietly, "I won't run."