A few moments later, Zyn returned to the garden, having failed all three of the simple assessments once more. She hung her head, tears in her eyes and her lip quivering. 

{Oh, Zyn!} Ren reached forward to hug her sister. {You’ll get your magic! I know you will! It’s just…really deep inside of you. But you’ll get it to come out! There are still more assessments, remember!}

Zyn didn’t make any reply. She sat on the ground, and Ren joined her, though the stone was hot to the touch and threatened to burn her hands. They watched the last student, a redheaded boy wearing a formal black robe, step forward to take his assessments. 

After several minutes passed, the student failed each of his tests too. Ak-tu brought the student over to the others. Though he hadn’t passed the tests, the boy looked much less bothered by the fact than Zyn. He kept his up-turned nose in the air, glancing curiously at the garden and school around him. He shoved his left sleeve up his arm, though it was already tucked in a golden ring at his elbow to keep it up.

“We will move onto the next set of assessments,” Ak-tu said, his gaze lingering on the red-eyed Zyn for a moment. “Follow me.”

“Where are we going?” Ren asked, as they headed for the southern building.

Ak-tu led them to a large, square stone on the ground outside the building. There were four of these platforms around the school, one for each building. They were placed directly beneath the doors of the upper floors. These stones used air magic to move up and down the walls, pausing at the door that the student commanded it to. Ak-tu originally had staircases installed at the school, but quickly dislodged them when a disabled student joined the school. The rising platforms were the perfect solution, and railings would appear to keep students from falling off. 

Ren followed her father onto the elevator, which shifted slightly as they clambered onto it. In the time Ren and Zyn had been at the school, they had never been allowed to go on the second or third floors of the southern building. The other three buildings only contained student rooms on these floors, but their father never said what was in the southern building.

“This is where we set up lessons sometimes,” Ak-tu said mildly. “Challenging lessons.”

Ren bit her bottom lip nervously, wondering what Ak-tu could possibly have waiting for the two teens.

Once they were each on the elevator, Ak-tu commanded it to rise. Railings shot up on all sides of them, then the rock slab moved up in the air. It stopped at the second door, and the front railing moved down to allow them passage. Ak-tu pulled open the door and signaled for the students to walk in ahead of him. Khurshid trailed behind them, then Ak-tu entered and closed the door. 

They were plunged into darkness for a moment, at least until Ren’s eyes adjusted. Both thin and heavy curtains had been pulled across each of the windows, which only allowed small amounts of light in, or blocked it out entirely. The room smelled of dust and wood, making Ren’s nose twitch. 

An obstacle course stood in front of them, stretching the entire floor. There were lots of random objects strewn about haphazardly: desks, chairs, wardrobes… Other objects were harder to distinguish in the dim lighting, only noticeable by the blackness of their forms. 

“This next assessment isn’t going to be easy,” Ak-tu warned Zyn and the other teen. “In fact, if either of you would like to turn back now, I will not think badly of you. This obstacle course is intended to scare the magic out of you. If you would like to try for your magic again next year, you may let me know now.”

Zyn shook her head fiercely. “There’s no way I’m giving up!” she growled.

“I’m not quitting, either,” said the redhead. “I’m already fifteen. I cannot afford to put my magic education on hold any longer.”

Ren shifted nervously. She was certainly glad she didn’t have to take this assessment. But she was still worried about Zyn. What if Zyn didn’t pass this test, either? Would the sisters be unable to attend magical classes again?

Ren frowned. Was she regretting her decision to wait for Zyn to have her magic? Would Zyn be angry with her if she decided to go ahead with enrollment, even if it meant Zyn would have to wait another year? 

But we do everything together, Ren told herself, making sure her thoughts could not be heard by anyone else. I promised Zyn I’d wait for her…so that’s just what I’ll have to do. Even if it means waiting another year…. I’ve already waited two school years, so what’s one more? 

“I’m going to ask everyone to get in this room behind me,” Ak-tu said, signaling to what looked like a hut in the left corner of the room. “You can watch from there. If anything heads your way, it will bounce off the wall due to the enchantments I put up.”

“What would be headed our way?” Ren asked.

“You’ll see,” Ak-tu replied. “Cypress, you’ll go first.”

The other student scowled. “I told you to call me C3.”

“Apologies,” Ak-tu said, a small smile on his lips. “C3, you can go first. You’re going to make it to the other side of the course when I give the signal. You will have to avoid the enchantments…or otherwise use your magic to get them out of the way.”

C3 nodded to this.

Khurshid then led Ren and Zyn into the small hut. Ak-tu entered after them, and they were practically sitting shoulder-to-shoulder, Ren feeling claustrophobic in the stuffy space. They stared out at C3 through the window in the wall.

“Go!” Ak-tu said, clapping his hands.

At once, the whole room was alive! Objects jumped around and blocked C3’s path. Large boxes crashed down on him (“Don’t worry, they’re empty and made of paper,” Ak-tu said when Ren gasped). Scary apparitions flickered. C3 did not flinch as these randomly popped up with loud screams.

He kept going, moving so quickly for appearing to be such a formal and studious person. He slid under and hopped over objects, ignoring the illusions. Just before he reached the end, another fake figure, bigger than the other apparitions, loomed in front of him. C3 lifted his hand, sending wind at the creature. 

“Stop!” Ak-tu called, clapping his hands again. The room instantly fell still.

C3 got to his feet and brushed off his robe. He then turned and walked back to Ak-tu, who had left the hut so quickly that Ren hadn’t even noticed he’d gone.

“You have air magic,” Ak-tu said as he approached the boy.

“Really? I couldn’t tell,” C3 replied sarcastically.

Ak-tu did not seem offended by this. He instead asked, “How long have you known?” 

“Known what?” C3 asked.

“I could see you were holding back from using your magic,” Ak-tu said. “Why?”

C3 seemed a bit annoyed by this accusation. He paused as he pondered what to say, then muttered, “I am sorry to have lied. The truth was that I indeed made a small swirl of air in the cauldron outside. I just did not want to say anything, as I desired to go through each of the tests. I wanted to see if this school would indeed be a worthy one for my education, as the reviews on the air-net say.”

“I’m happy to hear you are taking your education seriously,” Ak-tu said. “I ask that you do not perform more…experiments…unless specifically instructed to do so.”

“Understood, Mr. Caihong,” C3 said.

“You may follow Mr. Jihan to the Admin Office for your ID and room keys. Your parents are here?”

C3 nodded. “All three of them, Mr. Caihong.”

“Mr. Jihan will let them know the good news of your enrollment.”

Khurshid and C3 then left the building. Bright sunlight blinded them for a moment, and it took Ren’s eyes even longer to adjust to the dim room after the door closed behind them. The darkness seemed to consume them more than before. 

“Zyn?” Ak-tu called softly. “Are you ready?”

“Of course,” Zyn said, her voice high and full of tension.

“You may take your place here, and wait for me to say go,” Ak-tu instructed. 

Zyn left the small hut and stood where Ak-tu directed her. Ak-tu then entered the hut again, which had much more space now that two people had left. Ren glanced at her father nervously, her heart thrumming in her throat. Ak-tu clapped his hands loudly, the sound as loud as a firecracker in the silence.

Zyn hurried to and fro, trying to get across obstacles as they hurled at her. More illusions seemed to appear for her than they did for C3, almost as if Ak-tu was desperate to scare Zyn’s magic out of her. There were screaming griffins and roaring tigers, soaring birds and writhing serpents. But Zyn had to dodge each of these illusions, as nothing happened when she tried to punch the air. She soon reached the other side of the floor.

“I failed!” she cried out, crumbling to her knees at the far end as Ak-tu clapped the enchantments away once more.

Ak-tu led the way to Zyn, Ren close behind him, her heart still fluttering. Zyn remained on the floor, her legs sprawled out awkwardly and her face buried in her hands.

“You didn’t fail,” Ak-tu said firmly, placing his hand on her shoulder. 

“But I did!” Zyn wailed. “I didn’t pass any of the tests! I still don’t have my magic!”

“You haven’t finished the assessments yet. Get to your feet, Zynivus,” Ak-tu said gruffly.

“There’s another assessment?” Zyn asked, astonished as she removed her hands from her tear-stricken face.

“Yes,” Ak-tu said. “We’ll be going upstairs for the final test.”

“Is there another obstacle course up there?” Zyn asked, sprinting to the door with a new energy coursing through her.

“Not exactly,” Ak-tu replied.

Ren glanced up at Ak-tu, her heartbeat unable to slow down. But her father did not look her way. The two hastily followed Zyn to the elevator outside, blinking dazedly in the bright light. 

“Third floor!” Zyn yelped.

The front railing appeared and the platform went up. Once the railing was gone, Zyn opened the door of the third floor and scampered inside, clearly eager to summon her magic at any cost. But she soon paused in the doorway. Ren peered over her shoulder and quickly saw why.

This room had a tall ceiling, taking up what would have been the third and fourth floors in the other three buildings. This was due to the raised platform in the center of the room.

“You will be fighting,” Ak-tu told Zyn calmly, ushering her into the room. “Your magic will spring out of you as a defense mechanism. That is how magic operates in animals, and it’s how magic operated in humans until the spirits taught us to control it. Get on that platform.”

Zyn gawked at her father. He nudged her forward, and she stumbled almost blindly to the platform. Ak-tu glanced back at Ren.

“I want you to stay right next to the platform, in case she falls off. Do try your best to catch her, will you?” he added.

Ren nodded, a lump in her throat. Why have a raised platform in the first place? Why not lower it, have level ground? 

Zyn scrambled up onto the platform, which wasn’t placed too high off the ground. It seemed to rock as she got on it, and she threw her arms out on either side of her to catch her balance, gasping lightly in surprise.

Really? A rocking platform? Why? Ren groaned, clasping her hands together so tightly that her nails bit into her skin.

Ak-tu took up his position opposite Zyn, on the far side of the platform. He pulled something small out of thin air; Ren realized that he had teleported a hair tie to his hand. He quickly had his hair in a tight top knot, his bangs no longer in his vision. He then untied the black sash around his waist and took off his blue robe, tossing the robe lightly to the side. He tucked his long green tank top into his baggy pants, then retied the sash. Ren tried to swallow the lump again; her father was serious about this match, acting like he was about to do martial arts for rigorous hours.

Ak-tu fell still. The minutes passed slowly. It was as if Ak-tu was hoping that Zyn would show signs of magic and they wouldn’t have to do the final assessment.

“Are you ready, Zyn?” Ak-tu asked at last.

Zyn took a moment to respond. Then, she nodded, straightening her robe.

“I’m going to attack. You can attack me in return. Or you can try to evade. I’m obviously going easy on you, seeing as you have no combative experience. Just try to stay on the platform, and remember to summon your magic. If you are in a high state of panic, your magic should come forward.”

Ren snorted lightly at that. Zyn’s been panicking this entire time, and she still doesn’t have any magic! We’re just going to have to wait until next year, when she’s older and her magic comes out….

“Three…two…one!”

Ak-tu sprang at Zyn, who jumped out of the way in fright. Ak-tu sent gusts of wind at her, trying to knock her off the platform with punches and palm strikes. Zyn stumbled about, off-balance and trying to dodge the magic. Ak-tu then started throwing water at her, the water appearing from his fingertips.

Zyn was doing much better than Ren thought she would. She had half-expected Zyn to fall off by now. But the girl was fierce, and she stayed low to keep her balance as she scrambled around the platform.

“You’re doing great, Zyn!” Ak-tu called, panting. “Feel anything yet?”

“Maybe?” Zyn called back, also panting but not as winded as Ak-tu.

“Good, force that magic out of you!” Ak-tu said, before he lunged towards Zyn again with a clumsy air strike.

Magic took a lot of effort, especially if using more advanced magic or the entire body to summon it. Ak-tu was getting close to his limit.

“Zyn! Look out!” Ren cried.

Zyn nearly fell off the platform after being struck by a wave of water from behind. She managed to cling on, and Ak-tu allowed her to drag herself back up.

“Anything?” Ak-tu called hopefully. “We can end this if your magic comes out.”

“Come on, Zyn,” whispered Ren.

Zyn did not reply to Ak-tu’s words. It was clear that she still had yet to feel her magic, otherwise she would have happily thrown it forward. Ak-tu therefore attacked again, thrusting his feet out as he threw kicks.

Zyn continued to dodge. Suddenly, she was on the edge of the platform, her arms waving madly. Ren gasped, lifting her hands to her mouth. But she had no need to worry, as a gust of air pushed Zyn forward and kept her upright.

“You did it!” Ren screamed joyfully, hopping up and down.

“You have air magic too!” Ak-tu cried happily.

Zyn stared at her father for a moment, her mismatched eyes wide. She then gaped at her hands, in awe of the magic she had finally brought forth.

“Excellent work today, Zyn!” Ak-tu said, staggering over to hug his daughter, sweat dripping down his sienna skin. “I’m so proud of you. I knew we’d get there in the end.”

Zyn did not reply.