The silence before the storm was always the loudest.
The students stood assembled once more on the training grounds, though this time the formation was tighter, more focused. These were the chosen—those with six or more halos among the first-years, the seasoned second-years, and the disciplined elites of the third. There was no shouting. No laughter. Only the shared breath of anticipation.
The morning sun barely crested over the distant peaks when the ground beneath the Primordial Academy began to hum.
The vibration was subtle at first—like a low, ancient growl stirring in the depths of the earth. The students gathered in the training grounds stilled, looking around in confusion. Then, from the heart of the academy, something began to rise.
It emerged slowly, parting the stone floor of the central courtyard as if the earth itself opened to make way. Out of the shadows came black metal, glinting like obsidian polished by starlight. Wings stretched wide, enormous and sharp like a predator preparing for flight. The shape was unmistakable: the behemoth was forged in the likeness of a great eagle, its wings curved with aerodynamic grace, its head regal and fierce.
A flying vessel. Unlike anything the new students had seen.
Gasps echoed across the grounds. The first-years stared, stunned into silence. Its wingspan easily dwarfed the largest towers of the academy. It hovered, casting a titanic shadow over the field below, a deep thrum pulsing from within its chassis. Though it barely moved, the very air around it shifted, pressured by the aura of the thing.
Even the more stoic second-years found themselves glancing up, quiet awe returning to their eyes. And the third-years, though familiar with its arrival from years prior, could not deny the stir it caused in their chests.
Dawn tilted his head upward.
His gray eyes reflected the flying vessel above, sharp with curiosity.
Majestic, he thought. Built not just for travel... but for dominance. Just like a Majestic Sky Eagle!
The vessel shimmered faintly, its body lined with subtle light runes pulsing in rhythm. It didn't descend. It didn't land. It simply hovered in place, suspended above the earth like a sentinel of the skies.
Princess Luna stood calmly and poised.No emotion betrayed her face. She had seen it many times. The instructors, too, remained expressionless. To them, this was routine.
But to the first-years, it was manifestation of Myth.
Without warning, columns of light descended from the underbelly of the ship.
One after another, students were lifted skyward—bathed in beams that wrapped around them like warm strands of silk and gently carried them into the belly of the eagle.
There were no doors. No stairs. Just the steady, controlled pull of the vessel's transport system.
Gasps turned to startled cries, then to amazed laughter.
Gary glanced at Ingrid, eyebrows raised. "We're being scooped up like stones in a river."
"Speak for yourself," Ingrid muttered, barely suppressing a grin. "I think it suits me."
Dawn was next. He rose slowly into the air, arms at his side, his coat fluttering as the light pulled him upward. For a moment, he felt weightless. Suspended in transition.
And then he was inside.
The interior of the ship was vast. Open chambers arched around like cathedral vaults, and light strips illuminated the metallic walls with a soft amber hue. The floor was seamless and cool underfoot, and the air within the vessel was clean—not just clean, but pure, like it had been drawn from a mountain peak.
But it was the view that caught everyone's attention.
Transparent panels lined the walls, granting a panoramic view of the world below. As more students arrived, they found themselves pressed to the edges, craning to see.
And what they saw was wonder.
The Primordial Academy—its towers, courtyards, training halls, meditation groves—shrinking below them. Mountains fell away, rivers curled like veins of silver. The vast sky stretched above, infinite and clear.
Students pointed out landmarks they had only seen from the ground. Some called out to friends. Others simply stared, eyes wide, silent in awe.
The vessel began to move.
Smooth. Silent. Yet fast.
Below, the landscape changed swiftly. Forests gave way to plains, then to shattered canyons and glittering lakes.
High above, the behemoth eagle flew with effortless grace.
And far across the Celestial Empire, in hidden mountain cities and deep forest academies, across flame-scarred valleys and floating citadels, other vessels began to rise. Each unique. Some shaped like beasts, others like blades or serpents. Different transports, different philosophies. But all heading toward the same destination.
The Verdant Ember Duchy.
Dawn stood near one of the observation panels, hands tucked behind his back. He said nothing. But his eyes never left the horizon.
Something waited out there.
And it wouldn't be just another test.
It would be a beginning.