Three days of classes had sanded the edges off their expectations and sharpened everything else. By the fourth night, the Academy had settled into its usual quiet - doors shut, lights low, footsteps rare.
That was when Kori sent eight messages with the same three words:
"East court, midnight."
No explanation. No warning. Just the location and the hour.
They met at the east court with sleep still written all over their faces and pure stubbornness keeping them upright. The electrical lamp posts were turned down, casting soft circles of warm light over stone. Banners hung high and barely moved. The sky sat in that deep grey between night and morning.
