Entrance Exams

Asteria stared up at the vast walls of the city of Athens, shocked at how large and dark they loomed above, even from the distance from which she beheld them. The area surrounding the city was arid, water leached from the soil. Only recently, after she’d overshot Athens on her straight southeast trajectory and wandered through a desert that shouldn’t have been there, did it occur to her she’d been walking through a dried-out Gulf of Corinth for most of her journey. Perhaps what she’d seen in the whale's memories hadn’t really sunk in, but if she hadn’t seen the occasional aquatic carcass or fishbones scattered across the sand, she wouldn’t have believed the desert she’d been wandering through used to be the Mediterranean. If not for the stars finally shining after a few cloudy nights, she wouldn’t have known how far south she’d gone, deep into what was once a sea.

Strategically speaking… it had likely been drained to besiege and isolate Athens. Yet regardless, the city stood before her. During her journey, Asteria had come across various less-successful villages. Singed wood and shattered marble temples littered the desert landscape. She wondered what had happened to the people… if they had made it to sanctuary alive or lay buried under the rubble and shifting sands.

She still wore the wreath of gilded laurels granted by Kastallia, which Pythia had grudgingly told Asteria would ease her way into Athens before sending her off. The journey had still been long and tiring. Kastallia’s blessing lay cool against her neck, fighting off the worst of the assaulting sun rays, but her pale skin had burned regardless. Although the gigantic sand fleas still made appearances on occasion, they skittered off when they came in contact with her, seeming frightened—perhaps they were instinctively aware of Styx’s eyes on her.

Asteria approached the gates warily, eyeing the watch towers which had, in the last few minutes, filled with faces staring down toward her. Why was her arrival so special? Asteria had no idea.

She finally reached the base of the massive wall, feeling a brief wave of some kind of ward wash over her, and peered up at the guards closest to her. “Greetings,” she waved. “In which direction is the nearest gate of this city?”

The guard gaped and pointed wordlessly. Asteria nodded her thanks. It took longer than expected, curving around the massive perimeter of the city. As she reached the inset alcove with its towering gated entrance, a loud creaking filled the space as the huge gate was hauled open.

A tall, toned woman in a sculpted breastplate stepped through, choppy brown hair spilling out the bottom of her Corinthian helmet, flanked by several lower-ranked soldiers in heavy plated armor. She carried a shield edged in sharp bronze and decorated with a gorgon’s head—mirroring Athena's shield, the Aegis. Her spear arm was covered in jagged scars. She had four pale, perfectly circular scars just under her eye, and Asteria wondered at their purpose.

“We've received no requests for entry to Athens. State your business,” the woman demanded, spear pointed at the ready. Asteria refused to demean herself before mortals, but raised her hands peacefully.

“I seek the knowledge of Athena and refuge from the desert.”

“A wanderer?” The woman’s dark eyes sharpened. The armored woman scrutinized Asteria for a moment, her gaze piercing through the traveler's demeanor. Her eyes fell on the white mark of Styx at Asteria’s neck, standing out more on her sunburned skin, and Asteria shifted so her veil would better cover it. “A scrawny thing like you survived the desert wastes all on your own?” She mused it over, surveying Asteria’s relaxed but battle-ready stance. She lowered her spear slightly but remained guarded.

Asteria shifted. “I came here for the knowledge of your Lady. That is this city’s purpose, is it not?” The mortals didn’t need to know more.

The woman's eyes narrowed, still skeptical. “Athens is not a haven for those who bring trouble. Can you prove your goodwill or present a permit for entry?”

Asteria hesitated; she didn’t want to owe Pythia any gratitude. She sighed. “… I come here with the guidance of the Oracle of Delphi.” She removed the thick himation shielding her face from the sun and bowed her head, revealing the blessed laurels. Gasps rang out through the assembled guards, and the captain laughed boisterously.

“Should’ve said so from the start! Though the sea no longer reaches our shores, we still know better than to fight the tides of Fate. If you have Pythia's blessing, then you are welcome!” The woman nodded, gesturing for the guards to back off. She grinned at one subordinate, who remained tense.

“Come now, Alexander. You doubt that I can handle this little girl by myself?”

“Hey!” Asteria glared at the general.

“But Strategos, ma’am, how can we trust—”

“You see those laurels, Alexander? They’re a marker that she was directed to us by fate.”

“But if-”

“If what?” Alista’s tone turned challenging. “What if she’s a danger to the city? Then, Alexander Lochagos,” Alista switched to his formal title, emphasizing she was his direct superior. “We protect Athens as is our duty, and we die protecting it if that is our fate.” Though he still looked like he wanted to protest, Alexander backed down reluctantly, posture stiff, and vivid green eyes trained on Asteria.

With that, they passed through the large fortified gates and into the city. There were still crowds around, some in full armor and others in intricate uniforms: thick, brocaded black fabric decorated with gilded metal embroidery in stripes and delicate patterns. Alista unclamped her heavy breastplate, revealing the crimson fermeli vest she wore, its vibrant color popping against her dark skin. People parted to allow the General past, but closed in around Asteria as tightly as they dared.

“How did you survive the talirus swarms?” One young guard with sharply angled vivid orange eyes asked, and Alexander hissed out a warning.

Asteria tilted her head. “Talirus… you mean the fleas?” A few of the guards' eyes widened, and they took a cautious step back. The short one next to Alexander beamed.

“So cool,” he whispered under his breath. Alexander next to him rolled his eyes, dragging the shorter boy off, presumably back to their post.

Alista’s laughter boomed out.

“You’re bold, aren’t you? We’ll have to see about getting you into one of the Phylax academies.”

“What?” Asteria asked. “I have no intention of going to school. I am here for Athena.”

Alista halted suddenly. “You meant… you hope to meet with Our Lady, Athena herself? Good luck.”

“Pardon?” Asteria blinked. “Why?”

“Our goddess is not someone the public can access as you please, even if you come with the blessing of the Oracle,” Alista worried her lip before shaking a thought off. “But my point still stands: if you are ever going to meet her, it will be through the Academy. Even if education wasn’t mandatory for all residents and visitors of Athens, it’s your best bet.”

“Right, the mandatory edu—what?” It was Asteria’s turn to freeze as Alista resumed.

“I’m taking you to the Athens Dean now, of course. As the head of the school system, he’s pretty highly regarded—you’ll need his approval, among others, to stay here long-term.”

“I do not plan to.”

“…Right. Anyway, he’ll provide you with a designation. You may also get to submit your preferences. I’d recommend joining one of the guards,” She cheered, thumbing a fist to her muscular chest. “We are the proud protectors and heroes of Athens.” She turned around to flex an arm jauntily, then continued. “Even if you survived the Talirus, you’ll want to keep up with training and see what Athens’ warriors have to offer if you plan to win The Games after all.”

“The Games?”

“How do you come to Athens without knowing about the Panathenaic Games?” Alista gawped “I figured that might be how you hoped to meet Athena, but I suppose you are just... You know our whole thing is knowledge, right? How do you…” She noticed Asteria’s increasingly angry expression and stopped in her tracks. “Never mind.” Alista waved the thought off. “Every year a tournament is held to determine the champion of Athens alongside a festival honoring our goddess. The winner gets to meet our Lady and ask her any question—a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” She grinned. “The winners are almost always from one of the guards,” then she shrugged. “Typically the Peltists win. I train as a Hoplite myself—a spear and shield user,” she clarified, eyeing Asteria like she might be stupid. “But we all have our strengths—I was runner-up my second year competing, before I decided the Games weren’t for me.”

As they ventured further into the city, it unfolded around them, revealing bustling street marketplaces along a thoroughfare encircling the acropolis. A giant olive tree spanned out from the top of the massive hill, and below it a golden temple gleamed, guarded by a large statue of Athena, aiming her spear outward. The base of the walled Acropolis was surrounded by another layer of armed guards. Glumly, Asteria realized any attempts at forcing her way to meet Athena were out of the question with the state of her powers. Asteria gaped at unfamiliar sights and their strange clothing. Although… Asteria looked down at her previously glistening dress, now a sandy brown but still with its intricate drapery, long skirt, and pearl embroidery. Perhaps she was the one who stood out?

The shadows were growing longer as they wandered through the expansive city, passing through areas of luxurious temples and clear wealth, agricultural areas lining a large river flowing down from the Acropolis. Small, simple houses lined hilly streets, damaged and worn with age. Eventually they wound up near the foot of the Acropolis, in an area lined with large colonnaded Grecian buildings. Alista stopped in front of a particularly extravagant one, with a huge pediment and detailed sculptures, gesturing up a large staircase to the entrance. “This is the Phylax headquarters. Dean Educere generally acts as the headmaster here since it’s his Alma mater. He’ll be able to help you register for citizenship and determine your placement.”

“You will not accompany me further?”

Alista winced. “And deal with that miser? No thank you. I deal with him enough during the board meetings. Good luck,” she clapped Asteria on her back. “Let him know you came here on my recommendation. Ah,” she looked up at the gilded laurels still sitting on Asteria’s head. “And maybe hide that if you can. He has a thing,” she flapped her hand in a strange gesture, “for precious metals.”

“Oi—!” But Alista had already left, leaving Asteria alone at the steps of the intimidating building. “Will they accept a vagrant like I appear to be?”

It became abundantly clear a few seconds later (once she’d asked about the Guard) that yes, they were surprisingly willing to accept anyone who would join the dangerous profession. She gritted her teeth as the Dean shook her hand profusely, grinning widely.

“So glad you saw our school and decided to apply. We’re very happy to have you. How are your finances?” His gaze was trained greedily on the laurels, which Asteria hadn’t bothered to hide.

“Um… I do not… have any.”

“What?” He pouted. “But those who visit Delphi are typically of noble lineages…” He squinted up at her. “Are you an exiled noble?”

Asteria blinked, unsure how that had come up so quickly. “I am not?”

He looked at her with sheer disappointment for a second, then blinked, and it was gone, and he was beaming instead. “So I figured! Well, that’s fine! We have an amazing scholarship program here in the Academy System, and if you don’t qualify, no need to be concerned because we have loans!”

“Sure…”

“Just complete the registration paperwork, and then we can administer the scholarship and sorting tests,” the chubby old man beamed as he began pulling out and shuffling a stack of paper.

“I feel that this is a trap,” Asteria began.

“Nope nope!” The Dean dismissed, passing her a paper. “Sign here, and we’ll take good care of you. Fully funded, I assure you, granting you pass our knowledge test!”

Asteria sighed, figuring she could run away in the worst-case scenario of debt, and signed her name.

The Dean pulled it back toward him and scrutinized the messy script. “Hmmm… Astraea was it?”

“No—”

“Excellent, excellent, Astraea was a lovely goddess to all telling. Your parents chose a great name for you.”

“But—”

“Ah yes,” he hummed. “Quite a magnanimous name indeed, the beloved goddess—”

“My name is Asteria, not Astraea.” That minor goddess had been named after Περσης’s brother.

He froze, fumbling the papers he was shuffling. “Ast—Asteria, you say? Why that—such a strange choice to name your child…”

“What?” Asteria asked, offended.

“Oh, nothing, nothing. State secrets, you understand.”

“How—”

He ignored her, shuffling through the papers once again. “Let’s begin with this one.” he handed her one sheet, “and then continue with the rest of these.” he dropped the rest of the huge pile into her arms, and she staggered under the weight of the mass of exams.

She dropped the papers on the table with a thud. “Please halt yourself, Dean.”

“Oh, call me Ed, short for Educere, please!”

“Ed,”

“Of course, of course! Go on!” He gave her a cheery thumbs-up.

“I never decided to join an academy. I wanted to ask—”

“Oh?” The old man’s glasses flashed threateningly. “But you do want to, right? You want to be part of my amazing Academy? You’re not a dropout who gave up on education and refuses to follow the creed of our beloved city? Right? Right?”

“Err… yes…Sure.” Asteria deflated. She could find her answers while here anyway. She didn’t think there was any pressing time limit.

“Great, then hop to it, get started on your entrance exams! These are very important, you see. They’ll determine your placement and future within our city.”

Asteria sat down, flipping through the pages and rapidly marking down answers—battle strategy and tactician questions were frontmost, but quickly devolved into much more random segments about all walks of life, the proper way to use a warp-weighted loom, and finally a section on astronomy. She frowned down at the section, noticing the available options were wrong.

“Why does this assume the positions of the stars are stationary?”

“Because they are!” Ed cheered. “Oh dear, oh dear, perhaps your knowledge is worse off than expected.”

“However, the planet moves in relation to them—”

The Dean’s smile froze. “How absurd,” he laughed fakely. “Next thing you know you’ll be telling me the sun and moon move without Artemis’s and Apollo's powers guiding them.”

“They should?”

Ed tilted his head, eyes glinting. “Curious. It’s almost as if you believe universal time is passing.”

Asteria’s quill faltered. “Why do you say that as if it does not?”

Ed sighed, smile dropping slightly. “I’m sure you must come from some underdeveloped desert tribe; quite disappointing they wouldn’t share such important information, though. I’ll be sure to comp this section for you if needed,” Asteria bristled—astronomy was her forte. “Kronos has frozen universal time ever since they overthrew the Olympians and he lost his trump card. It prevents the Fates from directly interfering.” he squinted up at the laurels decorating Asteria’s head.

“I should have thought Pythia, that dear girl, would have told you this. It is her perfunctory duty to share this knowledge with the ignorant on their journey, after all. Although we all still age and change, the natural processes of the world would struggle to continue without our gods’ help. It is only due to Athena’s protection and the efforts of those with Demeter’s Blessing that our crops are able to grow. Apollo and Artemis allow the day to change to night, and so forth.” He sighed, looking at a sundial by the window. “Most things would not change without relying on the gods or the blessed”

Asteria gaped at Ed, flipping through the sections about natural processes, and changed the answers to the gods and minor deities that would instead govern them in this strange, twisted version of the world. He continued as if he didn’t notice her complete shock.

“Our exam is very comprehensive, you see. Strategy, smithing, geology, geography, paleontology, botany, astronomy, gastronomy, physiology, and more! Because of this, our scholarship entrance exam is very focused! Nothing like what you see in normal schools that aren't part of the Academy System. Only ten people since our founding have ever scraped by with a passing score.” He sparkled. “Don’t worry, though; you get two hours to work on these! I wouldn’t waste time asking such questions, if I were you. Most don’t finish in time—”

A loud thud interrupted him. Asteria leaned back, her feet up on the desk. She twirled the quill.

“What?”

“Oh, I have finished.”

Ed seemed a second away from coughing up blood. “W-What?”

“That was easy,” Asteria said, smiling, overly friendly. She had lived for thousands of years, hundreds of those among the gods whom the exam focused on—of course she knew the answers.

“Surely you can’t have had time to answer everything! Don’t be reckless!” Ed snatched the papers back and began flipping through them. After a minute, he collapsed to his knees. “They’re all correct!” The professor slithered back to his desk, deflated. After a second, he seemed to pop back into life, sparkling with new vitality.

“How amazing! Welcome to your new school! Your scholarship is covered. All that’s left is testing you for a dominion Blessing—I can only assume you haven’t been tested before, poor dear—but I’ll need to summon the council tomorrow. Protocol, you understand. How exciting to meet such a genius!”

“Is that so?” Asteria purposely looked the other way, ignoring Ed’s lively attempts to shake her hand.

“I’ll walk you out then! I bet there are some nasty hooligans I need to shoo off to their dorms!” In the next second, Ed was already standing by the door, swinging it back and forth as he waited for her. Asteria cringed but followed, her plans to sleep in some attack or small alcove within the academy building effectively extinguished.

Sure enough, when they reached the front of the school, there were, in fact, several groups of academicians loitering, murmuring something about their astronomy course. Someone stumbled out the door of the side building to the back of the group.

Ed smiled gently. “My children, the Academy is closed for the evening. Unless you have booked a training ground for nighttime training, it would be great if you could all leave.”

None of the students reacted to Ed’s chiding, continuing their chatter, and beside Asteria, he stiffened, his grin dropping.

“SILENCE.”

Asteria jumped, and she heard someone curse in surprise. The rest of the students stared wide-eyed at their headmaster, who lowered his gaze, despite being shorter than the rest of them, and growled like a threatening bulldog. “Leave.”

The students shuffled away in staccato, quickly getting further away until they all split and sprinted away. The professor gave them ‘I’m watching you’ fingers as they scurried off. Then Ed turned to her, pleasantly jovial expression back on his face.

“With that I’ll bid you antío. Meet me at the gate tomorrow when the sun has reached quarter peak, and we shall test you so we can officially file your Blessing.” He took her hand and patted it gently, like a frail grandpa he evidently was not. “I look forward to the results! I expect great things from you.” Then he turned around and hobbled past, clicking his fingers and causing the large gold-plated gates to slam closed behind him. He turned back, pointing to himself cheerily. “My Blessing is Hephaestus: Metallurgy, in case you were wondering.” And then he was gone, the wind blowing past an empty street.

But where should she go now? She spun on her heel and started walking in a random direction, resolved to stop at the first mildly comfortable place she could find. As she walked mindlessly, something caught her eye. Asteria skidded to a halt, spinning to face the stairs, where she could have sworn she saw a familiar face (warm golden eyes, tan skin, a blade through her heart), but there was just an empty staircase. Asteria shook her head vigorously. “It cannot be,” she mumbled to herself. “I am hallucinating… from the desert air.” She sighed, looking up to the stars, not a trace of movement within them. She should have noticed before that she could no longer feel the spin of the earth beneath her feet or the pull of the miniature constellations she had bound into the sky. Instead, there was an unsettling stillness.

She was tired. It had been days since she’d slept, and her mortal body couldn’t bear it any longer. She needed to find some soft soil and a tree to sleep under for the night, but so much of the city had paved bricks and hard-packed dirt. Asteria traversed through the narrow streets and side alleys between whitewashed cottages built into the hilly ground. She paused as she passed a graveyard, traditional cylindrical gravestones sticking up from plush earth. It wasn’t ideal… but she had once been a titan of necromancy. It was better than sleeping on the street or wandering until she found another park-like area.

She wondered if there were any lingering souls, but unlike with the whale, she couldn’t sense anything. It was no use. Her powers were gone, as Pythia had said, sealed away from her mortal body. Whatever had kept her soul from decaying despite Περσης’s powers, and granted it a mortal form after so much time, was interrupting her connection to her domain. Asteria rubbed at the aching scar under her collarbone, pain flooding her chest even trying to remember what had happened.

She headed wearily into the graveyard, meandering to the opposite end where a few tall trees grew. She didn’t know if there were any dangerous animals or smaller monsters lurking in the city, so without shelter, height was her next best option. Grasping at the lowest branch, she pulled herself into the tree and settled into the crook of the branch. Lumpy bark dug into her spine, but it was better than the ground, and so Asteria drifted off into an empty sleep, free of dreams and memories.