Three days after the blessing.

  The carriage arrived without sound.

  No herald announced it.

  No bells rang.

  Yet everyone in the courtyard felt it.

  Lucas was the first to speak. “Why does it feel like winter?”

  Ethan rubbed his arms. “It’s not wind.”

  Miha stood still, eyes fixed on the white carriage marked with a single golden rising sun.

  The door opened.

  A man stepped down.

  White robes. Gold lining. Perfectly arranged. No decoration beyond necessity.

  Authority without noise.

  The servants lowered their heads immediately.

  “I am Cassian Vale,” the man said calmly.

  “A servant of the Radiant Sovereign.”

  His eyes swept across them.

  Lucas held his chin high.

  Elara stood straight, composed.

  Ethan tried not to look nervous.

  Miha met his gaze without flinching.

  And then—

  Elias.

  Standing slightly behind the others.

  Quiet.

  Cassian’s gaze lingered for half a heartbeat longer than it should have.

  Then moved on.

  “The High Priest has instructed me to refine your elemental control,” Cassian continued.

  “All five of you.”

  A faint pause.

  “Out of kindness.”

  Lucas frowned. “Kindness?”

  Cassian did not answer.

  “Follow.”

  He took them to the courtyard where :

  Five stone pedestals stood arranged in a circle.

  Cassian positioned himself in the center.

  “You possess Astral Essence and elemental affinity,” he began.

  “But affinity without control is childish.”

  Lucas muttered, “We’re not children.”

  Cassian’s eyes flicked to him.

  “Prove it.”

  Silence returned.

  Cassian raised two fingers.

  “You have heard of stages.”

  Lucas immediately asked, “How many are there?”

  “For you,” Cassian replied evenly, “only two matter.”

  He lowered one finger.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “Stage Seven.”

  His voice cooled.

  “The weakest.”

  Elara stiffened.

  “Stage Seven is the realm of those who struggle to command even a single element. Their light fractures. Their will collapses. But soul purification can make their Astral Essence stable.”

  His gaze shifted.

  Not directly.

  But undeniably.

  Toward Sushank.

  “Most remain there.”

  He lowered the second finger.

  “Stage Six.”

  His tone changed.

  Firm. Controlled.

  “Stage Six is refinement. Stability. Authority.”

  Lucas crossed his arms. “And you?”

  Cassian looked at him.

  “I am not your concern.”

  The answer ended the discussion.

  “Begin.”

  Lucas stepped forward confidently.

  He extended his hand.

  The air twisted around his palm, dust lifting from the courtyard stones as a thin spiral of wind screamed to life.

  Dust rose violently around him.

  Elara shielded her face. Ethan stepped back.

  Lucas grinned. “See?”

  Cassian walked straight into the spiral.

  The wind parted around him.

  “Speed without direction,” Cassian said calmly.

  “Wind is not chaos. It is obedience.”

  He sliced two fingers downward.

  The spiral collapsed instantly.

  Lucas stared. “How did you—”

  “Control,” Cassian interrupted.

  Lucas clenched his jaw.

  He gestured to Elara.

  Elara stepped forward.

  The ground beneath her began to tremble violently, her Astral Essence erupting from her body in a force she could no longer control.

  “Focus,” Cassian said sharply.

  Elara inhaled and tightened her fingers.

  The ground steadied.

  Cassian nodded faintly. “Earth listens to quietness , not emotion.”

  Elara lowered her hand slowly.

  Ethan's turn came.

  Ethan closed his eyes.

  Moisture gathered in the air.

  A ribbon of wind formed, circling his wrist like a serpent.

  Smooth.

  Graceful.

  Lucas whispered, “That’s actually impressive.”

  Cassian flicked his wrist.

  The ribbon shattered into droplets.

  Ethan flinched.

  “You hesitate,” Cassian said calmly.

  “Water rewards decisiveness.”

  “Miha.” he called.

  She stepped forward.

  The air changed.

  Subtly.

  Cassian watched carefully now.

  “Show me.”

  Miha raised her hands.

  A flicker of flame ignited in her right palm.

  Wind swirled around her left.

  Moisture condensed along her fingers.

  The stone beneath her feet trembled faintly.

  The elements answered her instantly.

  But they did not harmonize.

  The wind pushed too hard.

  The fire flared unevenly.

  The water trembled.

  The earth cracked under pressure.

  Miha gritted her teeth. “I can hold it.”

  “Control them,” Cassian commanded.

  She tried.

  The wind nearly extinguished her own flame.

  Water splashed violently.

  The stone fractured.

  Cassian stepped forward and raised two fingers.

  Everything froze.

  The elements stilled instantly.

  Silence fell.

  Cassian studied her carefully.

  “Stage Seven cannot do this.”

  The words were deliberate.

  Measured.

  “Comparable to Stage Six but not powerful.”

  Miha’s breathing slowed.

  “proximity is not arrival,” he added coldly.

  “Refinement is required.”

  Miha nodded. “I’ll master it.”

  “I expect you to.”

  “And you.”

  Elias stepped forward.

  The air seemed thinner.

  “What is your element?” Cassian asked.

  Elias looked at his hands.

  “I… don’t know.”

  Lucas scoffed softly.

  Cassian’s voice remained smooth.

  “Those who have less Astral Essence often lacks clarity.”

  He gestured toward the pedestal.

  “Try.”

  Elias extended his hand.

  Nothing happened.

  No wind.

  No flame.

  No water.

  No earth.

  Just silence.

  Ten seconds passed.

  Cassian watched intently.

  Too intently.

  “Stage Seven,” he said quietly.

  “Comparable to those.”

  His eyes locked onto Elias’s.

  For a brief moment—

  Cassian held Elias gaze a moment longer than necessary. Then, deliberately he turned away.

  “You will observe.”

  “Yes, sir,” Elias replied calmly.

  No shame.

  No frustration.

  That unsettled Cassian more than failure would have.

  The night came.

  Summer nights should be warm.

  This one was not.

  Miha stood by her window, staring at her hands.

  Lucas said quietly from the doorway.

  “You’re a monster.”

  Miha smirked faintly. “Control first. Then I’ll accept that.”

  Across the hall—

  Cassian stood before his travel altar.

  A small golden crest of the Radiant Sovereign rested upon it.

  He lit a candle.

  The flame rose high.

  Too high.

  He closed his eyes.

  “Radiant Sovereign…”

  Silence answered.

  But it did not feel empty.

  He remembered Elias’s eyes.

  Stage Seven.

  No Astral Essence.

  And yet—

  When the boy raised his hand—

  For a fraction of a second—

  The air had gone quiet.

  Not powerless.

  Quiet.

  The candle flickered sideways.

  Cassian opened his eyes slowly.

  The room felt colder.

  Even in summer.

  Elias stood beneath the moon.

  The sky was clear.

  Brilliant.

  Tonight was the brightest night of the season.

  And yet—

  The night felt cold.

  His shadow stretched longer than it should have.

  Far above—

  Something radiant shifted.

  Not in anger.

  Not in hostility.

  But attention.

  At dawn, Cassian reached to extinguish the candle.

  He froze.

  The golden crest of the Radiant Sovereign had split cleanly down the center.

  No scorch marks.

  No cracks spreading outward.

  Just a single, perfect fracture.

  As if something unseen had quietly rejected it.

  The table beneath it was untouched.

  Cassian stared at the crack for a long time.

  His composure did not break.

  But his certainty did.

  He whispered—

  “…Something about that boy is wrong.”

  Outside—

  The sun rose.

  But the air remained cold.