The Radien Equine slowed as it neared a familiar building. At the end of a small road was a concrete structure of considerable height, and from Edin's angle, all that could be seen of it were its magnificent columns and the steps that led up to them. It was here where he was dropped off during his first test to become a guardian. This time, he had to drive himself.

Edin navigated to a parking lot at the side of the building. Half of it was under the shade, and by the time Edin would be done with his test, no space would be unexposed to the Sun. He parked deep within the building's shadow, then got out and locked the doors.

Buzz. Edin fumbled his phone from his pocket. It was a text from Rowan: good luck, u got this!

Edin smiled. Thanks, he replied, I'm pretty nervous honestly.

He silenced his phone, kept it in his pocket, then made his way into the building.

For some reason Edin could not name, whether it be psychology or physics, he felt more resistance as his feet passed over pavement and onto the stone steps. Edin's footsteps grew heavier as he ascended the staircase. Again the imposing structure cast its downward glance at him, shrouding him in its shadow. Perhaps he was just lucky to have passed the first time. What if he lost control now? Edin shook his head. No, no, he had had ample training with Arden. He had had ample training without her too. He had thrown hands with his urges long enough to know how to subdue them. He would no longer be a slave to whatever cursed desires threatened to take hold of him, and he was going to prove it to them.

The doors granted him passage, and he entered the building. The same receptionist he talked to when he took his first test was manning the front desk.

The receptionist looked up from her computer. Then glimpsed her monitor. Then him. "I've just notified Senior Riven that you're here; he's been expecting you."

"Oh." Edin felt his heart leap; he was sure that he was on time. "Where's he waiting?"

"I'll lead you to him."

She left the counter where she was stationed, and he followed her down the corridor. They went down a path similar to the one they took before. Edin placed a hand over his chest—his heart felt like it was going to leap out of his body from how hard it had been beating. He attempted to calm himself. He was prepared. He was prepared. He was prepared.

The receptionist stopped in front of a door. "He's waiting for you inside."

"Thank you."

She uttered no response to his thanks and left without another word. Edin tilted his head, then shrugged. She likely did not mean to be rude. One hand reached out and opened the door, and to his partial surprise, it was easier to open than he thought it would be.

He was in a different room from the one he first took his test in. The layout was largely the same, but it was far smaller. Though the ceilings were rather high, he could not help but feel confined. Perhaps it was the lack of windows or any other orifice other than the door that had just been closed behind him? The fact that he was surrounded by cold, dark, virtually impenetrable stone? Across the room, a single man with dark hair and dark eyes sat at a table, clipboard in hand.

Riven looked up from his clipboard. "Good morning, Edin. Please stand further from the door."

Edin paced forward till he was near the center of the chamber.

"That'll be enough." He picked up a pen. "Normally we'd have two or more people here to carry out the test, but since we're short-staffed, I'll be your only examiner. Understood?"

Edin nodded. "Yes, Senior Riven."

"Excellent. Now let's confirm your details first: your name is Edin, surname unknown; you're currently twenty-three years old, birthdate unknown; you're a legal resident of Irien, Asdur; and your abilities include fire-wielding, lightning-wielding, and swordsmanship. Correct?"

"Correct."

Riven penned a few things on his document. He then placed his pen down and stood up from his seat. "Now let's get started."

Riven paced a few meters to Edin's right till he was standing right next to the wall. He positioned himself, his back facing the wall and arms crossed in front of his chest.

"Unlike your previous test, this will be far shorter," Riven began. "A beast will come out of the floor. First, you'll have to identify it; after that, you must slay it with your sword. Any questions?"

Edin raised a hand. "Will I be allowed to use fire and lightning?"

"Only to propel yourself around the room and for defensive purposes. You must kill the beast by drawing blood."

Edin kept still and silent, trying to hide the fact that the last word wetted his tongue.

"Is your mouth watering at the thought of blood already?"

Edin held back a gasp. "How did you—"

"I saw the way your mouth moved when I mentioned it, but that was very subtle. The look in your eyes was a bigger giveaway."

Edin's cheeks turned red from embarrassment. "Sorry."

"No need to apologize. Not like you could help it." Riven turned his attention to the center of the room. "Reveal the beast."

The ground opened with a loud rumble. A pole erected where the flooring once was, and chained to it was a beast twice the size of a man. It snapped its jaws at Edin as soon as it caught sight of him, green-tinged drool trickling from its mouth.

Edin did not flinch at the slightest. He observed the creature's features—two rows of razor-sharp teeth extended from blackish-red gums, seemingly as pointy as its green-tinged claws. Scales ran across most of its leathery skin, covering its body in armor except for the neck and underside.

Edin paid closer attention to the claws and underside. A slight mint shade colored them.

"It's an ætterling," Edin said.

"Correct," Riven confirmed. "Now draw your sword."

Edin opened his right palm. His mind called his weapon into existence.

"Now, kill it."

The chains snapped in an instant, and the ætterling charged ahead.

Edin jumped to the side, dodging the beast's toxic claws by the skin of his teeth. His right hand gripped his hilt tighter. He looked back. The ætterling dug its claws into the ground just before it could crash into the wall.

Footsteps fleeted across the floor as Edin rushed at the beast. His sword pointed at the neck. Ready to slice.

The beast reared its head—

Slice!

Crimson spilled from where he slit the neck, running down the edge of his blade.

Edin's mouth grew moister.

Edin spun around to face the beast. It staggered backward as it flailed its limbs at him. He parried each attack with his blade, then when the moment was ripe, he lunged and drove his sword through the beast's heart.

The ætterling let out a final cry—or attempt at a cry, for its throat had been halved—before its corpse collapsed to the ground.

"Stop!" Riven's voice thundered in his ears. "Don't move till I tell you to, and don't even think about looking away."

Edin obeyed and planted his feet firmer on the ground, cementing his stance. Both of his hands handled the hilt of his sword. He did not dare to let his sword slide up or down his palms, not even a bit. Edin lifted his chin.

Deep blue eyes drank in the sight of dark red blood.

His gaze focused on the bleeding carcass, loitering between the gash in its neck and the stab wound on its chest. The pool of blood seeping from the body darkened as it expanded, and with it, the smell of death wafted further through the air. Edin watched it with great difficulty; the scene before him was oh-so tempting. An urge to chop up the remains traveled down the veins popping out of his arms.

His more human side wrestled with his urges. He was a man, a civilized man; not a bloodthirsty, barbaric savage.

Riven raised an arm and flicked his wrist, sending a beam of shadow magic that split the corpse in half. More blood rushed out like water from a burst dam.

His voice was slow and emphatic. "Don't move."

Edin's forearms quivered for a second before he regained control, forcing them to still. Shaky breaths escaped his nose and saliva began to flood his mouth. He swallowed a few times. No, blood was not a drink. Blood was filthy.

The pool had grown large enough to reach his feet. Edin almost took a step back, but remembered Riven's command, and he stayed put. He squirmed in his spot as blood threatened to seep into his shoes. Its metallic scent was piercing his nostrils now. Every breath was a surge of temptation he tried his best to resist.

Time passed like molasses down a drain. Edin's efforts to restrain his inner monster were wearing him out. How long had he been forced to stand still? How long ago did Riven give out his last command? Could he at least give Edin permission to take a few steps back and remove himself from the puddle of blood forming around his feet? Edin felt Riven's stare boring through his skull. Asking was no option.

Moments crawled past. Edin's muscles lost tension as he gained more restraint. Temptation waned, and before long, he could breathe freely without feeling overwhelmed by the gory aroma. Could he move now? No, not before Riven told him so.

Riven cleared his throat. "You may move now."

Edin put his sword away and turned his head to face Riven. The senior guardian was expressionless, as he was in the previous test.

"You did better than I expected," Riven admitted. "Arden will tell you later whether you've passed or not. You may go home now."

"Thank you, Senior Riven."

The senior did not respond to his gratitude.

The door opened to let Edin exit, and as he did, a great burden was lifted off his shoulders. He had done it. He had proved that he was in control of himself. Sure, he had not been told what the final decision was, but he was certain that he had passed. Edin could not have failed if Riven told him that he exceeded his expectations.

Beep. Edin reached into his pocket and pulled his phone out. There had been a few texts sent to his phone, and the most recent one came from his mentor.

I might be late to tonight. Wait for me at the meadow; I'll see you there.

His thumbs tapped on the screen while the rest of his body piloted itself down corridors and through doorways. Okay, was his reply. His fingers fiddled a little more. I think I passed, btw. His hip narrowly missed the edge of a countertop as he strode through the lobby. Riven said I did better than he thought I would. His feet were at the edge of a step when, as if they had gained a mind and eyes of their own, halted just before he could fall down the steps; they were now descending one at a time, careful to not let him trip his way down.

By the time Edin had bothered to put his phone away, the building was behind him, and so was everything that had happened inside it.

***

The meadow was comfortably quiet that evening—not eerily quiet, for there was no sense of unease that filled the young man who was waiting there. Edin had laid the picnic blanket out and was now sitting quietly on it, next to a picnic basket he had prepared. He was waiting. Waiting. Waiting. It was not the first time he had waited here; three years before, his body lay unconscious, waiting for someone to save him from death.

Edin shifted in his spot. Had it really been three years since he was found? Part of him felt that he was found ages ago, and another side of him felt like it was just yesterday when Arden took him in. Edin leaned backward till he lay on the blanket, watching grass and weeds and flowers rise to his height. They did not seem to change all these years. Perhaps they were the same plants that watched him faint that fateful day.

Lapis lazuli gazed upward at the twilight sea. What did happen before Arden found him? His eyes wandered around. The hairs on his nape stood on end and swayed like the blades of grass—he could feel the remnants of an event that happened in this very meadow, but he could not recall it in his mind. All he knew was that he had fallen here somehow. That, and that he woke up in a bed right after. Edin shook his head. No bother trying to recall now when he had failed to the thousand days before.

A dark figure glided into view. Edin pushed himself to sit upright, and once he caught sight of it, his lips curled into a soft smile. "You're finally here!"

Arden drifted across the meadow, her coat flowing in the wind. "Sorry; I was really busy today." She took a seat across him on the blanket, and at once, food and drink began to flow out of the basket.

Edin exhaled softly. "I can't believe it's been three years since you found me."

"Me neither," Arden said. "Time flies so quickly."

Their picnic feast had finished arranging itself. Among the expected delectables like bread, cheese, and cured meats, there was also a small blueberry cheesecake set at the center, adorned with three small candles. Since neither of them knew when Edin's birthday was, they had decided to celebrate it on the day Arden took him in. That night he was twenty-four. He could be twenty-four nearing twenty-five, or he could be just turning twenty-four, they did not know, but it was a start. Edin pinched the wick of each candle, leaving behind tongues of blue flames.

"By the way," Arden said, "I got something for you."

"You did?"

She answered by pulling a box out of thin air. From the size of it, Edin had an inkling of what was inside. Arden passed it to him, saying, "Happy Found Day."

Edin pulled the end of one ribbon and opened the box. As soon as he caught sight of the gift, his face lit up.

It was a pair of black combat boots.

Arden smiled. "Congrats on passing the test, cadet."

"Thank you." Edin's mouth remained parted as he continued staring at his new pair of boots. Even if he knew that he was going to pass, his mind and heart still raced at the confirmation.

"Your next shift starts two days from now, by the way," she informed, "but we can talk about that later." Her magic lifted a bottle of champagne and poured it into two floating glasses, one of which she picked from the air with her right hand. She raised it. "Tonight, we celebrate."

Edin picked up the other glass. "Cheers."

"Cheers."

Clink.

And they drank to their hearts' content.