Eryx didn't waste a single second standing around to feel sorry for himself. The forest swallowed the morning light the second he passed beneath the thick, interlocking canopy of the Sector Seven border.His head throbbing from the fever, he pushed through the damp ferns, his boots moving soundlessly across the wet loam. Days of studying the Academy's old terrain maps and scouting the eastern wood line paid off immediately.He knew the lay of the land—the rocky ridges where wind made tracking impossible, the thick briar thickets that blocked heavy beasts, and the hollowed oak trunks perfect for hiding.Up ahead, low branches snapped.Eryx dropped flat into a shallow ravine, pulling a mesh of damp moss and dead leaves over his tactical coat. He held his breath, pressing his face close to the cold earth as his core pulse slowed to a faint, barely detectable hum.A stray pair from Squad Six emerged into the clearing. The rider, a cocky mid-tier student with slicked leather armor, sat low

There was a moment of complete silence.The wind died down in the treeline and the rain stopped dripping from the leaves. The pressure hanging over the clearing was so thick it felt hard to breathe.Eryx’s head snapped toward his dragon and beside him, Kael and Liam froze, their breath hitching as their eyes slowly tracked the black shape writhing in the mud.The beast was going through a horrific, unnatural change.Its dark body convulsed violently, its shadowy frame expanding as raw black veins bulged and spread across its scaled skin like spiderwebs of liquid iron. Low, sickening cracks echoed through the clearing as its bone structure snapped, elongated, and reinforced itself under the sudden influx of stolen core energy. Thick bone-spikes tore outward through its ridge, plating its back in crude armor.“What is it doing?” Eryx thought, his pulse hammering against his ribs. He could feel the feedback wire in his soul burning red-hot, tearing at his sanity. “It didn't just consume

"Elder, please," Eryx stammered, taking an instinctual step back. "I didn't break any rules—""Silence," Vane cut him off, his voice cracking like a whip across the open courtyard.Two high-tier guards in blackened steel armor stepped up from behind the pavilion, their spears crossing in front of Eryx before he could even think about backing into the crowd. The metal shafts slammed into the cobblestones trapping him in place.Eryx's chest tightened, cold sweat breaking out across his neck. “No. No, no, no. They can't look inside. The stolen core-essence hasn't fully digested yet. It's still burning in my veins.”"We do not require your permission, boy," Elder Vane said, his single eye glinting with a malice. "A useless straggler surviving a mid-tier surge while two ranked riders vanish without a trace is not luck. It is foul play. Or forbidden sorcery.""Sorcery?" a student in the crowd whispered, sending a wave of panicked murmurs through the surrounding squads."He couldn't have kil

The lecture hall broke into panicked chatter. Students scrambled over benches and pulled out tablets and scrolls to redo their training schedules. Five days was not enough time to heal or refine a beast bond.Eryx sat back in the shadows and watched. "Five days. I have five days to stabilize this core before they drag us into another rift."Suddenly, noise came from the outer courtyard.It started as a shout near the stone archway. Within seconds the noise grew. Screams and shouting filled the courtyard.Lady Sultan paused at the doorway, her hand on the iron latch. Her brows pulled together as the noise came through the oak doors."Stay in your seats," Sultan commanded.She opened the door and stepped onto the stone balcony overlooking the lower quad.The sight below made her stop.The guards at the main gate had lowered their spears. Walking through the fogged courtyard was a tall figure in a torn, blood-stained cloak. His leather armor was cut and burned. His dark hair was dirty. B

Panic tore through the underground chamber.The alarm kept wailing as the red emergency lights flashed across the cracking walls. Dust fell from the high roof, and chunks of stone smashed into the gallery below."Evacuate the gallery!" Elder Vane shouted over the noise. "Guard the high-tier heirs! Clear a path for Lord Xavier and Lady Mira first!"The enforcers moved fast. Ignoring the other students, a ring of guards pushed through the crowd and grabbed Xavier, Mira, and the children of the ruling houses. They forced a path to the central lift, leaving the rest of the cohort to use the narrow stone stairs.Sultan tried to fight back toward the dais. "Aldric!" she screamed. "Sol, stay close to me! Sol!""Mother!" Sol cried, but the wave of fleeing students pushed between them. A falling pillar hit the lower walkway and sent dust and rock into the aisle, cutting off the exit."Push forward! Clear the stairwell!" the guards shouted, driving Sultan and Sol back with their shields as the