ECHOES OF FORGOTTEN

Chapter 5: The Shape Of Tomorrow

The walk back from the orphanage to the Royal Academy felt strangely quiet. Not peaceful. Quiet in the way a battlefield felt before shouting charge.

One glance at Mira was enough to reveal the unease she was trying to hide. "...Are you okay?"

"Maybe."

"Mira."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm not. But we can't change things now."

I looked away from her and toward the Academy rising above the city. The closer we got, the larger it seemed.

The white towers caught the first light of dawn, glowing gold against the dark sky.

For years, it had felt impossibly far away. Today, it felt close enough to touch. That terrified me.

Around us, the streets were already crowded. Applicants walked in silence. Some carried lucky charms. Others carried notebooks they were pretending to read. One boy was muttering legal definations under his breath. A girl beside him looked ready to throw herself into the river. honestly i understood both reactions.

"Do you think they're already posted?" Mira asked.

"Probably."

"What if they aren't?"

"Then we stand around and panic for longer."

She winced. "You're not helping."

"I know."

We climbed the final set of stone steps leading to the Academy. And stopped. The crowd was enormous. Hundreds of people were packed. Parents. Applicants. Friends. Entire families. All staring at a massive board mounted. The results. Nobody was moving. Nobody was speaking loudly. It felt strangely sacred. Like entering a temple. Or an execution.

A nervous laugh escaped Mira." I think I'm going to be sick."

"Please don't."

"Why?"

"We're standing next to nobles."

"That's fair."

Before either of us could move closer, a scream erupted somewhere ahead.

"I PASSED!" The girl responsible immediately burst into tears. Her mother joined her. Then her brother. Then a man neither of them seemed to know. The crying spread surprisingly fast.

Mira swallowed. "Oh no."

"What?"

"If I cry, don't tell anyone."

"I absolutely will."

"Monster."

The crowd shifted. SLowly. Painfully. We moved forward one step at a time. Closer. Closer. Until finally the list came into view. Rows of names covered the board. Black ink. Hundreds of dreams written across a single piece of parchment.

Mira immediately began searching. I did the same. One column. Then another. Nothing. My stomach tightened. Another column. Still nothing.

Beside me, Mira suddenly froze.

Completely froze.

"Oh."

My heart dropped. "Oh?"

Then she pointed. A trembling finger. Right near the middle of the board.

Mira Vale.

Silence.

Then- "I PASSED!"

Half the courtyard jumped. Several birds abandoned a nearby roof.

I covered my face. "Mira."

"I PASSED!"

"Everyone knows."

"I PASSED!"

"Yes."

"I PASSED!"

People were staring. Mira didn't care. Not even a little. Then her expression changed. Immediately. She grabbed my shoulders.

"Find yours."

Suddenly, I couldn't breathe properly. My eyes returned to the list. One row. Then another.

And then-

There.

Lysandra. Just Lysandra. No surname. No title. No family name. Just Lysandra. For a moment, the noise around me disappeared. I had passed.

"WE PASSED!"

For a moment, neither of us moved.

Then Mira launched herself at me. Not gracefully. Not with dignity. I barely had enough time to brace before she collided with me hard enough to nearly send us both into the list of names.

"We passed!"

"We passed!"

"WE PASSED!"

You're shouting again."

"I DON'T CARE."

People turned to stare. Mira still didn't care.

For the first time since I had known her, she looked completely happy. I couldn't stop smiling. Because somehow... Against all odds... We had done it.

AShrill whistle suddenly cut through the courtyard. The crowd quieted. An Academy official stood atop the stone stairs leading to the main building.

"If you passed, stop blocking the gate!"

A pause.

"Especially the girl screaming."

Mira pointed at herself. "ME?"

"Yes, you."

"Rude."

"Remmeber that tomorrow is the combat examination. If you saw your name on the list, go home and prepare."

A collective groan rolled through the crowd.

The official glanced over the crowd one last time. "And try not to die."

Silence. Then someone raised a hand.

"IS that official Academy advice?"

"No."

"Good."

"It was a personal request."

That somehow felt worse.

The crowd slowly began dispersing. Some applicants looked excited. Most looked terrified.

Mira watched them leave. Then looked at me. Then looked back at the Academy. Then at me again."Lys."

"What?"

"We should train."

"Reasonable."

"We should train immediately."

"Also reasonable."

"We should train until our arms fall off."

"Less reasonable."

"Imagine how embarrassing it would be if we survived six hundred pages of law and geography only to get punched unconscious by a noble with expensive boots."

I considered that. "That would be embarrassing."

"Exactly."

We started walking back toward the city. The Academy is shrinking behind us.

Mira stretched her arms over her head."So."

"So?"

"If tomorrow's combat exam involves running, I'm doomed."

"You say that every time we run."

"Because every time we run, I nearly die."

"That's dramatic."

"That's accurate."

"We run every day up and down for the orphanage. The nobles aren't nearly as good as us. They drink their tea and discuss useless politics, and only run for practice. We run for work." I say.

Mira pointed at me dramatically. "Exactly."

"You realize that's not a normal motivational speech."

"It motivated me."

"You motivate yourself with bread."

"Bread is extremely motivating."

I couldn't argue with that.

The rest of the day went as always. Cook. Clean. Feed children. Train.

Apparently, passing one of the most difficult examinations in the kingdom did not exempt us from peeling potatoes. I considered this deeply unfair.

"You're chopping those vegetables aggressively." Sister Dana observed.

I glanced down. "I'm preparing for tomorrow."

"By attacking produce?"

"Yes."

She considered that. The nodded.

The next day arrived far too quickly. I was convinced the sun had developed a personal grudge against me. One moment, I was asleep. The next-

"LYSANDRA!"

I opened one eye. Darkness. Silence. Pain. It couldn't possibly be morning.

"LYSANDRA!"

I pulled the blanket over my head. "Go away."

"No."

"Why?"

"Because we have the exam today."

I sat up immediately. "..Oh."

The dread arrived a second later.

"Exactly," Mira said.

The orphanage was already awake. Children ran through the halls. Someone was crying. Someone else was laughing. The kitchen smelled of bread. Normal. Completely normal.

By the time we finished breakfast, Toby had wished us luck seven times. Finn had challenged me to a duel. Twice. And sister Dana had handed us both small cloth bundles containing lunch.

"Try not to get injured."

"We'll do our best."

"Try harder."

Fair.

The walk to the Academy felt different this time. Yesterday had been about hope. Today was about survival. Applicants filled the road. Far fewer than before. Only those who had passed. Only those stubborn enough to continue.

When we finally arrived at the Academy arena, there was only silence. Like the silence before a storm.

The massive circular courtyards were packed with applicants. Nobody was talking. Nobody was laughing. Even Mira looked nervous. Which was deeply concerning. Because Mira usually talked through every disaster.

"You're quiet."

"I'm thinking."

I immediately stopped walking. "What?"

"What?"

"You're thinking,"

"Yes."

"That's never a good sign."

She looked offended.

"I think all the time."

"Not voluntarily."

Before she could throw something at me, some people came from the Academy. With their uniforms, they stood out immediately. Academy students. Older. Confident. They stopped in front of the dais, looking straight at all of us.

"Scary," Mira said.

"Very."

Then my eyes caught a familiar flash of blue. The same shade that made me think of the strange woman who appeared outside the orphanage.

He stood near the center of the Academy. Tall. Straight back. Calm.

A murmur spread across the applicants.

"It's him."

"The Duke's son?"

"The one from the Hero Division."

"I heard he ranked first."

"I heard he beat three upperclassmen."

"I heard he-"

"I heard people should stop hearing things." Mira muttured.

I almost laughed.

The whispers continued anyway.

"Kael Craven."

The name passed through the crowd like a gust of wind.

"Well, he's annoyingly handsome. " Mira said.

I nearly choked."Mira!"

"What?"

"That was your conclusion?"

"It was my first conclusion."

I stared at her. "And your second?"

"It's more of a question than a conclusion."

Her expression shifted. The joking disappeared. Not completely. Just enough. "It's more of a question."

That caught my attention. "Which is?"

Mira looked towards the Academy students. "Why are they here?"

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"The seniors?"

She crossed her arms. "I asked one of the market guards about the Academy entrance exams last year."

That sounded like something Mira would do.

"When?"

"While you were carrying potatoes."

Fair.

"And?"

"they didnt use Academy students."

Now she had my full attention.

Mira continued. "Applicants fought applicants.

A bad feeling immediately settled in my stomach.

Before I could ask another question, movement on the platform silenced the arena.

The silver-haired instructor stepped forward. Hundreds of eyes turned toward her. Even the Academy students in front of her straightened.

The morning wind pulled at the banners hanging from the towers.

For a moment, nobody spoke.

Then the instructor smiled.

I immediately disliked it.

"Welcome, applicants." Her voice carried easily across the entire arena. "Yesterday, you proved you could think."

A few people looked proud. The instructor noticed. And somehow looked disappointed by it.

"Today, we determine whether you can survive. This year's combat examination will be different from every year before it."

A collective groan rolled through the crowd. The instructor raised a hand. Silence returned.

"Listen carefully." Something in her voice made the hairs on my arms stand up. Around me, the applicants became still. Even the wind seemed quieter. Waiting.

The Academy students in front of her exchanged amused looks. As though they already knew something we didn't.

Which, unfortunately, they probably did.

I shifted my weight. And that's when I noticed it. At my feet. A single tulip. Red. Bright against the stone.