The convoy yard at Sparkshire's processing center buzzed with subdued energy—hundreds of candidates disembarking, collecting their belongings, saying goodbyes to personnel who'd transported them across Republic territory for months.

Bright stood with his squad near their transport, waiting as House Aurin mercenaries efficiently organized the unloading process. Captain Selene supervised with her usual professional detachment, checking the manifests, coordinating with the Academy staff, treating the candidates' arrival as a contractual obligation completed rather than a significant milestone.

"End of the line," Duncan observed quietly, looking at the convoy that had been their home for months. "Feels strange. Like we're leaving safety behind."

"The convoy was never safe," Mara corrected. "Just mobile. Now we're here. Now we face whatever Sparkshire actually means."

Around them, other candidates from the convoy lingered in similar clusters—outpost recruits from territories Bright had barely heard of, military transfers from preliminary training facilities, a few independent candidates like Bolt who lacked obvious noble backing.

People from the boonies, Bright recognized, using the Central slang he'd picked up during travel. Kids from outposts and frontier territories. Places where survival matters more than education. Where combat capability trumps theoretical knowledge.

One group—three candidates from an eastern outpost called Redwatch—approached with hesitant camaraderie.

"You're from Vester, right?" the tallest asked, a girl with burn scars along her left arm suggesting fire-related combat experience. "We heard about your holiday party. About the assault. That you survived."

"We survived," Bright confirmed, keeping his tone neutral. "A lot of people didn't."

"Same story everywhere," another Redwatch candidate said, his voice carrying exhaustion that transcended physical fatigue. "Different details, same reality. Outposts get hit. People die. Survivors carry forward. That's just how it works out here."

"Out here" meaning anywhere outside Central's protective sphere. Anywhere the Republic's power thinned enough that Crawlers and politics and resource scarcity killed with equal efficiency.

"You think the exam will account for that?" the third Redwatch candidate asked. "That we spent our time learning to survive rather than memorizing some trumped up Republic history?"

"No idea," Duncan admitted. "But we're about to find out."

They exchanged information—outpost locations, squad compositions, survival stories that shared common threads despite their geographic separation. The camaraderie was genuine but temporary, all of them recognizing that the Academy sorting would likely separate them.

We're all just kids from the boonies, Bright thought. All trying to prove we belong in Central. That we're more than just provincial recruits who got lucky.

Captain Selene called for a final organization, her voice cutting through conversations with professional authority.

"Academy candidates from House Aurin convoy—report to processing station three. Bring all documentation. Leave your transport belongings for sorting. Move efficiently."

The candidates dispersed toward their assigned stations, the temporary bonds formed during transit already beginning to dissolve under the institutional pressure.

Bright took one final look at the convoy—the transport that had carried them from Vester's ruins, through Republic territory, into Central's overwhelming presence.

Thank you, he thought without voicing it. For getting us here intact.

Then he turned toward the processing station three, toward Sparkshire Academy's formal entrance procedures, toward whatever tests and sorting mechanisms awaited.

The convoy phase was over.

The real evaluation was beginning.

-----

The examination hall was grand in ways that made Vester's functional architecture look primitive by comparison.

Vaulted ceilings that rose thirty feet, supported by columns carved from single pieces of marble. Windows arranged to maximize natural light while lamp posts provided supplementary illumination that eliminated shadows. Hundreds of desks arranged in precise rows, each equipped with examination materials and enough personal space to prevent easy cheating.

The candidates filed in with varying reactions—noble scions looking comfortable in opulent surroundings, outpost recruits showing carefully controlled intimidation, military transfers maintaining their professional composure.

Bright felt his anxiety spike as he surveyed the testing environment.

Written examination, he thought, his stomach tightening. Knowledge assessment. Exactly what I'm worst at.

Combat capability, he could demonstrate. Tactical awareness, he possessed naturally. But formal education? Theoretical knowledge about Republic policies and Shroud mechanics and historical contexts?

I'm fucked, Bright assessed with brutal honesty. Outpost education prioritizes survival over scholarship. We learned enough to function, not enough to excel on comprehensive examinations.

Duncan settled into the seat beside him, his massive bulk making the examination desk look undersized. His expression showed similar anxiety—recognizing that physical strength provided zero advantage in written testing.

"I'm not good at this," Duncan admitted quietly. "Never was. Too much memorization. Too much theory instead of practice."

"Same," Bright confirmed. "We focused on staying alive. Not on studying some shitty Republic bureaucracy or historical precedents."

Mara took position on Bright's other side, her expression showing determination rather than anxiety. "It's just another test. Just a different format. We've survived worse than written examinations."

"Have we?" Duncan asked skeptically. "Because right now, facing Crawlers sounds preferable to facing essay questions about political theory."

Around them, other candidates settled into assigned positions. The seating appeared random but Bright suspected otherwise—suspected that Academy staff had deliberately mixed noble scions with outpost recruits, had positioned different backgrounds together to observe their interactions.

Still testing, Bright recognized. Still evaluating. Even seating arrangements serve assessment purposes.

Adam sat several rows ahead, his posture relaxed despite the formal testing environment. His Enhanced Cognition would provide advantages—faster processing, better recall, analytical capability that transformed the knowledge assessment into an optimization problem.

He'll excel, Bright predicted. This is exactly his kind of challenge.

Ellarine positioned herself near the hall's center, her noble training having prepared her for the formal examinations in ways the outpost education or lack thereof never could. She looked confident without arrogance, prepared without anxiety.

Silas was present somewhere in the hall—at least in theory. Bright's spatial foresight could only just graze his position, a faint impression rather than a fixed point, despite knowing roughly where Silas had been assigned. He really was frighteningly suited for assassination, should he ever choose that path.

An undeniably useful talent, Bright conceded inwardly. Just not one that helps with written exams.

You couldn't vanish from questions.

The examination proctors entered—three Academy instructors whose core ranks radiated Adept-level authority. They positioned themselves at strategic points around the hall, their enhanced perception making cheating attempts futile, their presence reminding candidates that this was an official evaluation rather than a casual assessment.

"You have four hours," the lead proctor announced, his voice carrying through the hall without shouting—some kind of sound manipulation ability making him perfectly audible to every candidate. "Examination covers Republic history, Shroud mechanics, political structures, tactical theory, and core integration principles. Answer thoroughly. Show your reasoning. Demonstrate understanding rather than just memorization."

Examination materials appeared on each desk—thick packets of questions, blank answer sheets, writing implements that looked expensive enough to be weapons.

"Begin."

-----

Bright opened his examination packet with trembling hands, scanning the first page with growing dread.

Section One: Republic History and Political Structure

Question 1: Describe the formation of the Republic following the Great One's fall. Include analysis of how regional power structures consolidated into a unified government. Discuss the role of noble houses in establishing institutional frameworks.

Question 2: Compare and contrast the authority structures of Central governance versus outpost administration. Explain why decentralized power became necessary for the frontier's survival.

Question 3: Analyze the political implications of the Never-Ending Night. How did artificial darkness affect social organization, economic systems, and military strategy?

Fuck, Bright thought with crystalline clarity. These aren't simple recall questions. They want analysis. Want answers that demonstrate sophisticated grasp of institutional history.

He started writing, drawing on whatever fragments of education he'd absorbed between combat training and survival operations. His answers felt thin—lacking the depth and sophistication that proper schooling would have provided, compensating with practical observations rather than theoretical frameworks.

I know how outposts actually function, I mean I've lived it, Bright reasoned. Know the reality of frontier administration even if I don't know the official policies. That's worth something. Maybe.

Section Two: Shroud Mechanics and Crawler Biology

Question 4: Explain the relationship between the Shroud and Crawler intelligence. Why do some Crawlers demonstrate coordinated behavior while others operate on simple instinct?

Question 5: Describe the biological mechanisms that allow Crawlers to produce cores. Include discussion of essence crystallization and why core quality varies.

Question 6: Analyze the tactical differences between fighting hive-mind creatures versus individual predators. Use specific examples from documented Crawler encounters.

Better, Bright thought, his anxiety easing slightly. This is practical knowledge. Stuff I actually understand from direct experience.

His answers improved—drawing on memories of the ant colony coordination, of watching the Crawlers operate, of tactical discussions with Atheon and other experienced fighters. He couldn't cite academic sources, but he could describe reality with firsthand authority.

Around the examination hall, candidates worked with varying levels of confidence.

Adam's hand moved steadily, his Enhanced Cognition processing questions faster than average, his intelligence background providing exactly the analytical framework the examination demanded. He barely paused between questions—reading, analyzing, answering with efficiency that suggested the material was almost trivially easy.

He's destroying this, Bright observed with mixture of pride and envy. This examination was designed for people like him.

Ellarine maintained a similar pace, her noble education having prepared her for exactly this kind of comprehensive assessment. She wrote with confidence, occasionally pausing to consider nuance but never showing uncertainty about fundamental concepts.

Duncan struggled visibly. His massive shoulders were tense, his expression showing frustration as he worked through questions that demanded theoretical understanding he'd never developed. But he continued—answering what he could, leaving blanks where necessary, refusing to surrender despite obvious difficulty.

Mara worked methodically, her mind compensating for educational gaps through systematic analysis. She treated each question like a combat problem—identifying core requirements, allocating resources efficiently, accepting that perfect answers were impossible but adequate ones were achievable.

Section Three: Tactical Theory and Combat Applications

Question 7: Design a defensive strategy for outpost under coordinated Crawler assault. Include consideration of resource limitations, population protection priorities, and acceptable casualty calculations.

Question 8: Analyze the tactical advantages and disadvantages of core specialization versus general capability development. When does a focused build progression outperform balanced enhancement?

Question 9: Describe optimal squad composition for various combat scenarios. Explain how different core combinations create tactical synergies.

Finally, Bright thought with relief. More questions I can actually answer with confidence.

His writing accelerated, drawing on memories of squad operations, of tactical discussions and combat experience that provided concrete examples. These answers felt strong—demonstrating understanding that came from survival rather than textbooks.

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