The Exam

        After everyone is done with the check-in process, Uriah steps up to a podium to address the crowd. Everyone has been eagerly awaiting. Everyone falls silent the second Uriah steps in front of the microphone. "Good evening, everyone. As most of you may know, my name is Uriah Leoh. Cacumen Academy does not normally hold these entrance exams in smaller remote towns. Still, this place holds a special place in my heart from when my family visited our vacation home atop the nearby mountains. I've used my influence as a Platinum Plate student to come and hold an exam in this region. I hope to get some great candidates from the Emerald Woodland region. You will be taking a test-of-power exam this evening and an academic one tomorrow morning. There are four different proctors who have the freedom to choose whatever test they want to administer to gauge your strength today. Your proctor will be determined based on the random number you got while checking in. Be sure you get with your appropriate proctor within 30 minutes or fail the first portion. You are dismissed."

          Everyone whips out the card with their randomly assigned number. They all look around the vicinity to determine which proctor is correct but cannot find the answer anywhere. You can hear the chatter from people, "how do we find out?", "where do we go?", "where's the answer?", "look everywhere." The students are confused and starting to panic. Adrion, Kazuo, and Ringo huddle together.

          "So, what are your thoughts, Adrion?" Kazuo asks.

          Adrion thinks for a moment, "I'm just as lost as you guys."

          "Oh come on! How are we supposed to figure this out?" Ringo looks concerned.

          Adrion takes a look at the proctors and the surrounding area. He notices people taking the gamble and approaching the proctors. The proctors remain still and quiet. "What are your numbers?" Adrion asks the other two. The three of them hold out their card. Adrion has a number two on his, Kazuo has a number four, and Ringo has a number one. Adrion looks back at the proctors. "I highly doubt it's something as simple as the proctors standing in order… or could it?"

          Twenty minutes pass and the group of three is still confused by the numbers. Adrion plays with the card in his hand since he's tired of figuring out how to solve the first test. The card slips from his fingers and falls to the grass. Adrion picks up the card and notices something. He squints his eyes, "what's this?" The other two turn around, wondering what Adrion said. "Give me your cards," Adrion tells them with his hand held out. The other two don't hesitate to hand over their cards. Adrion looks at the cards from multiple directions. "I think I solved it," Adrion says out loud. He hands the cards back while pointing at the bottom edge of the card. "Here's your answer," Adrion tells them.

          Kazuo takes a look and smiles, "ahh, I see now. Gotta say that's pretty clever."

          Ringo is still confused, "what's going on? I don't see anything."

          Kazuo puts his palm over his face, "geez. I didn't know your eyesight was bad."

          Adrion moves the card a bit in the sunlight. "I see it now! Holy crap, that's hard to see," Ringo says.

          "Well gentlemen, this is where we split up," Kazuo says, holding his head high, imagining himself as the group's leader. Adrion is already walking away to the 4th proctor.

          Ringo waves over to the other two, "good luck everyone!" Ringo rushes over to the 1st proctor. Kazuo sighs, feeling betrayed, and slowly makes his way to the 2nd proctor. The remaining students overhear the group and proceed to do the same.

          The answer for the first test was hidden in the students' cards. There were only four numbers that were distributed, one through four. Though multiple students shared the same number, each card had different markings. They are hard to spot but not impossible. With the sun hitting the bottom edge of the cards, you can see a faint dash. The number of dashed lines indicates which is your proctor.

          A bell goes off, indicating that the search for your proctor is now over. The proctors move away from each other, going to their station. Once the groups are far enough from each other, the proctors do a roll call of the students assigned to them. Kazuo was the first to find out he was in the right spot. Later, Adrion hears his name get called out by his proctor. Ringo was the last to find out but was at least standing in the right group. "Those whose names were not called, you fail and are dismissed," all four proctors announce to their group of students. A handful of students walk away, sulking and angry at themselves.

          "Hmm. A lot more than expected passed the first test," Uriah tells Shun.

          "This is why I kick them out beforehand," Shun replies with his eyes closed, trying to nap.

          Uriah smiles, "Try to go easy on those that pass. Remember why we made the exam easier."

          Shun opens his eyes, "Yeah yeah, I remember. Still going to piss me off that fodder will be passing the exam to such a prestigious school."

          A stranger that Adrion has never met or seen is standing next to him. He has short brown messy hair and a fit build. "Why did you and your friends speak loudly during the first test? Would've been fewer people passing," He says in an angry tone.

          "Afraid of a little competition?" Adrion says while still facing the proctor. The other student gets ticked off.

          Adrion's station is full of odd stands and one large stand that looks like fifteen back to back and weld together. The proctor tells the students to stand in front of the small stands. Since more students than expected passed, more of the smaller stands are brought out by assistants. They position the smaller stands in front of students that don't have one and secure them to the ground. "To pass my test, you must destroy several of my special barriers. That large contraption will hold fifteen barriers. You must destroy the average amount for Cacumen 1st-year or more to pass. The average is four barriers. You all will have one chance to test out the strength of my barriers on the smaller stand, then one chance on the real test," announces the bulky proctor.

          The proctor goes down the line creating one barrier on the stands in front of the students. At irregular intervals, students have at it trying to destroy their freebie. Adrion places his hand on the barrier to feel it. He lets go of the barrier and forms a fist. He sends a little of his power towards his fist. Adrion throws a good punch at the barrier and sees his hand bounce off it without damage. "Hahaha, what the hell was that?" says the student that made the earlier remark. He continues, "good to know you're just a weakling. Now, this is a true attack." The student's right arm turns an almost dark metallic color. Rather than going for a punch, he fixates his palm toward the barrier. "CANON SHOT," he yells. Before Adrion can blink, the barrier shatters into a million pieces by a metallic sphere slightly smaller than a baseball. The sphere crashes into the ground leaving a small crater around it. Smoke rises from the student's palm, and there is a distinct smell of gunpowder in the air.

          "That's how it's done. Good job, uhm, Roland," the proctor says as he checks his clipboard. Full of himself, Roland lines up for the actual test. Adrion follows him since he is also ready for the test. The remaining students line up behind Adrion.

          The proctor stands next to the large stand ad sets the first set of barriers. "Alright. Ritsu, you're up." The first student in line, Ritsu, walks up to the multi-layer stand. After striking a pose, his arm glows a yellow color. With a powerful jab, four barriers shatter at once. "A strength enhancement type? Nicely done, Ritsu," the proctor announces. Ritsu walks to the side and stands idly as the proctor replaces the broken barriers. "Asahi, you're next." The following student walks up to it. He creates stone in the shape of a stalactite and launches it. It destroys four barriers and is stuck on the fifth one. The proctor rebuilds the barrier, "That's some durable stone. Another pass."

          The following five students fail to break the necessary amount of barriers. Roland walks up to the barriers with an arrogant smile. Once again, his right arm turns a dark metallic color as he aims. This time he uses his left hand to hold his right arm for stability. Roland shouts, "COLOSSAL SHOT!" Adrion swears he hears a fuse ignite. A yellow and orange flash spreads from Roland's palm, and a massive boom oscillates in the air. A sphere twice the size as before flies out, shattering seven of the barriers. Roland's body flings back, but he manages to balance himself before he can fall back.

          "A promising student in the making. Terrific," The proctor says as he replaces the barriers.

          Roland walks towards the group of those who passed. He pauses by Adrion and shrugs his shoulders with a smug smile, "You shouldn't even bother. Just a waste of time for a weakling like you." An odd quiet and angry sound mimicking speech goes off. "What was that?" Roland is confused.

          Adrion walks forward to the stand, "you're imagining things."

          Adrion takes a deep breath and thinks, "I have to destroy four… just four…." He gets his right fist ready and takes another deep breath. Adrion launches his fist at the barriers and makes a concerned face when it makes contact, "Shit," he mutters as he witnesses ten of the barriers shatter. A dark object swiftly burrows its way back into Adrion's sleeve. Everyone's eyes widen in shock, including the proctor's.

          "Th-that's a pass…" he's left speechless. Adrion walks over to the others, trying his best to maintain his neutral expression. "Erm, truly a remarkable display of strength. Great work, Adrion," the proctor continues.

          Of the remaining six students, only one passed. A girl named Honoka Akane. She has a slim yet fit build. Honoka has long black hair with yellow streaks running down to her tips. When she approached the barriers, she placed her hand on it. An audible shriek resounds in everyone's ears as the stand shakes violently. Five barriers shatter from her attack.

          Once the students that fail walk away, the proctor gives the next set of instructions. "Congratulations. You five passed with ease. I'd like to see how strong all of you will grow in the future. Good luck with your academic exam tomorrow. You are dismissed."

          The students who pass walk away to rest or study for the night. Adrion walks over to a nearby tree and grabs his right shoulder. "Why the hell did you do that for?" Adrion whispers. A weird sound snaps back at Adrion. The odd sound mimics speech in an angry tone. Footsteps approach Adrion.

          "Hey man. How'd you do in the first exam? Bet you passed," Kazuo approaches.

          Adrion turns around, "yeah. It was no issue."

          "As much as I love ya as a friend, sometimes that attitude rubs me the wrong way," Kazuo tells him.

          "What about you?" Adrion asks

          Kazuo smugly smiles, "you see, your boy managed to pass." He turns his head to the side and whispers, "... barely…."

          "What about Ringo?" Adrion points to a gloomy-looking Ringo sitting on the ground next to Kazuo with his arms wrapped around his knees, rocking back and forth.

          "Woah! When did you get here?" Kazuo says in shock. He continues, "Wait, don't tell me. Did you f…."

          "I passed…" Ringo says quietly.

          "WHY DO YOU LOOK SO GLOOMY THEN!" Kazuo yells.

          Ringo moves his face away from his knees. "It was all luck. Dumb luck…. I won't last in Cacumen. I'm gonna be eaten. I'm gonna be eaten. I'm gonna be eaten," Ringo repeats.

          "Come on get up. You can worry about all that later. For now, why don't you show us what you've been hyping up?" Adrion says.

          Ringo springs up from the ground, "OHHH, you're right! Come on, let's go over to the creek!"

          "You had us worried for nothing, you big oaf. What the hell, let's go," Kazuo says. The three walk away to their usual hang-out spot by the creek without concern for tomorrow's exam. In fact, Ringo and Kazuo have a better shot than Adrion in the academic portion.