"Korvus help us"
Cassian heard Cain mutter when he got the question.
They sat beside each other. He got what he wanted.
"Cassian" Cain whispered "what's this thing they're talking about in the second question."
"How would I know? I don't have the questions yet" Cassian whispered back.
"You" the Acolyte passing out the questions pointed at Cassian " Switch seats with him."
She pointed to some other boy at the far end of the hall, by the window. Cassian could hear Cain wailing as he got up.
The questions were hard— the hardest test in Aetheros—understandably so. But he still didn't think he would fare too badly.
"You have three hours, you may now, start"
One second there was a shuffling, a hundred papers flipped all at once, and the next second, there was silence. A loud silence.
There was a bone breaking chill in the room.
His palms were shaking, he could barely hold his quill. The ink dripped on the scroll. Everyone was writing.
Anytime now Cassian.
Start with something simple. Start with your name.
Cassian Reinhert
Now the questions.
He answered the first question. He knew what he was doing, and the questions seemed easier now. The fear that threatened to cripple him now gone.
Time flew by,
"you have five minutes left"
He'd done all he knew, he turned back to look at Cain, he looked worried, he always looked worried during exams. Cain was fine.
Cassian walked out of the hall and heaved a sigh of relief. The sun had set quite a bit when they finished. He wasn't necessarily worried.
But anxiety was normal. It happened. He memorised the questions, he wanted to review them. Even though he knew it didn't matter.
He opened the door of his room. His books were still scattered on the floor.
He picked them off the ground and flipped through pages. He confirmed the answers one by one. And with each correct answer, his confidence increased.This was good, this was what he needed. He could actually pass, he could do it. He picked up a book, forgotten marks. He didn't read it. He'd picked it up randomly when he didn't know what else to read. But he found out it was outdated, they never tested it. So he never bothered reading it. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't. The entire text was in an old, almost forgotten language.
He put all the books together and piled them in the corner.
He sat on the chair staring at nothing really.
This was just the first step. He was getting closer, soon, he would have what he wanted. He pulled out the black watch from his pocket and let it rest so its chain was in his hand and the rest of it dangled, like a pendulum. He let it swing, sinking into the motion.
He remembered Cain's words again. What he said was true, but so what? Everything up until this point. All the trials, all the suffering, it was to set him on the right track. To prepare him. It was all destined.
The sun was almost completely gone now. Almost time for dinner. He deserved to treat himself. But alas, he would—just like every other Wednesday— have the food they served at the dining hall. It wasn't bad, the grub was good actually. But he felt they ought to change it at times. It gets boring when all you have for six years is variations of the same meal, only changing on special occasions. This seemed like a special occasion so maybe there would be a change. He doubted it.
There was a certain buzz in the air, everyone was humming, like bees in a field. He felt it too, the tingle he was sure they felt.
Cain walked towards him
"Those questions were unholy"
"Were they?"
"Yes Cassian, they were"
"How did you do though"
"Terrible, I think I failed."
"It couldn't have been that bad"
"Easy for you to say, I was alone, the boy beside me knew nothing. Kept pestering me for answers"
"Did you help him?"
"What does it matter now? I just hope Korvus blinds the Acolyte marking my question"
The murmuring subsided, the archon walked in, flanked by two guards. His white robe stood out in candle lit halls.
"Hail Korvus"
"Hail Korvus" They all responded
"I trust you all did your best today," He paused, same dramatic pause as when he made when he had the woman killed
"Tommorow you shall know the results. I wish you nothing but luck"
He walked out, the two guards paused, looked around before following behind him. Empty formalities
"Tommorow? Can't they give us a week" Cain was whimpering beside Cassian.
Some other people were whispering too, murmuring in agreement. To him however, tomorrow was just fine.
There was a crowd outside the hall. They had a class. It seemed pointless, Nevertheless, everyone was present—there was punishment if you missed any classes without just cause— but no one was really paying attention.
Out of the hundred taking the test, only people who scored higher than sixty-five passed the rest were cut, doomed to retake the test or go on with their lives doing other things. The previous year, barely half had passed. Of those, only half had manifested marks during the ritual. Some people here had failed. How ironic, that they would wait so patiently to find out they didn't make it.
The Acolytes walked out of the room. One of them had a scroll in his hands, was that it? That small piece of paper, no longer than an arm, had all the names of people that passed. That small piece of paper was going to determine the futures of everybody here?
The students parted, moving to the side as the Acolytes walked closer. The one with the paper went to the board and pinned it there. Not a single word said, he just looked at them before walking away
Chaos ensued soon after. Everyone trying to look, trying to see if they made it. Some people were already smiling, they must've seen their names. Cassian started from the bottom. Sixty people had passed. That was a lot more than the previous set. He started upwards. One name at a time. He was at fifty now, was he not there? He saw Cain at forty five. He actually managed to pass.
By thirty he was shaking, his eyes could barely keep track of the names. What if he wasn't there? He missed some questions, maybe he forgot to write his name. Did he write his name? He was down to the final ten when Cain came up to him.
"We did it, we actually passed. Oh praised be Korvus"
"We? Cassian asked "Did you see my name on the list?"
"What are you talking about? It's the first name on the list. A perfect hundred"
Cassian's eyes darted to the paper, this time he started from the top. Cassian Reinhert.
"You didn't actually think you failed did you?"
He had watched his family die. He had survived at a temple for six years. Spent his time there reading, and preparing, and believing
And he just passed the hardest test in Aetherosp