The Sanctum of Veil-born did not feel like a military sector. As Grace, Mable, and Caleb stepped through the high arched gates, the roar of the Central City vanished, replaced by an unsettling, clinical silence. The air was cool and smelled faintly of crushed herbs. White-robed initiates moved along the marble corridors with downcast eyes, their footfalls muffled by thick, woven carpets.

  "It’s like a library that decided it wanted to be an infirmary," Grace whispered, her voice echoing too loudly against the pristine walls. She nudged Caleb with her elbow. "Look at them. I haven't seen one of them crack a smile since we walked in. Do they remove your sense of humor during the orientation, or is that a second-year requirement?"

  Caleb adjusted the strap of his pack, his eyes scanning the architecture with a critical squint. "The density of the Luma-filters in this wing is incredibly high. It’s designed to keep the environment sterile for delicate spell-weaving. They probably don't smile because they're too busy worrying about their internal resonance being off by a fraction of a percent."

  Grace just blinked at the initiate—she had just randomly tossed that question out, not exactly expecting an explanation. "Sounds exhausting," Grace muttered, flashing a lopsided grin. "Imagine having to watch your breathing just so you don't accidentally blow up a potion. I'd last twenty minutes before I started a fire just to see some color in here."

  High above the atrium, on a balcony draped in heavy silk, Sophia stood in shadow. Her presence was a weight that most didn't notice, but her eyes—sharp and predatory—never left the trio. She leaned slightly toward BloomLight, who stood a half-step behind her.

  "The girl with the blue eyes," Sophia murmured, her voice a silk thread. "She is a healer. Go see if she is interested in being one of the specials."

  BloomLight, surprised, opened her mouth to ask—Specials? Right away?—but she noticed a confidence in Sophia’s eyes that brooked no argument. She nodded, her expression unreadable, and descended the grand staircase.

  Meanwhile, near a fountain of flowing light, Grace and Mable were joking. Grace tapped Mable’s far shoulder, making it look like someone on the other side had touched her. When Mable turned, Grace leaned forward into her space with a teasing "Hi!" Mable looked at her silly expression, a smile starting to form, but before she could say anything, they were interrupted.

  "Mable," BloomLight said, her voice gentle yet commanding. She ignored the other two, her focus entirely on the girl whose stillness rivaled the marble pillars. "The Healer sector is not just about medicine. It is about the preservation of life. You have a rare, steady frequency. With the right training, you could be the heart of a legion. You wouldn't have to fight in the mud; you would be the one who ensures the mud never takes a life."

  Mable didn't hesitate. Her expression didn’t change. "I’m not a healer, Archon. We’re planning on staying together. My answer remains the same as it was in the arena. No."

  BloomLight’s eyes flickered, but she didn't push. She simply stepped aside, her silence as heavy as a dismissal.

  On the other side of the hall, Grace drifted toward a nearby alcove where a group of newly joined healers were practicing basic stabilization charms. One of them, a girl no older than fourteen with wide, nervous eyes and a clumsy grip on her focus-crystal, looked like she was about to bolt.

  Grace leaned against the wall with her usual lazy posture. The girl jumped and stumbled, nearly falling. Grace moved instantly, catching her by the waist to steady her. The girl’s face flushed a deep crimson as she looked up at Grace.

  "I... I just can't get the resonance right. It keeps flickering. I am sorry."

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  "You're holding your breath," Grace noted, giving her a wink that made the girl look away bashfully. "Breathe out. You didn’t fall, and I am pretty amazing." She joked, her natural charm drawing the shy girl out of her shell.

  Grace continued the conversation, gesturing with a hand as she made the initiate giggle, completely oblivious to the temperature dropping several degrees behind her. Mable stood a few paces back, her arms crossed, her eyes narrowed into thin slits as she watched Grace charm the blushing initiate. She wasn't shouting, but the way her fingers dug into the fabric of her own sleeves spoke volumes.

  Suddenly, a loud crack echoed through the hall. One of the larger Luma-stabilizers near the ceiling—a heavy brass and crystal unit—shuddered. A hairline fracture raced across the glass, and the mounting bolts snapped with the sound of a gunshot.

  Grace didn't think. Before the heavy machinery could even begin its descent, she was a blur of motion. She dove across the hall, throwing herself in front of Mable, her arms spread as if she could physically catch the ton of brass and stone.

  The stabilizer crashed into the carpeted floor five feet away. Shards of glass skittered across the floor, and a piece caught Grace across the back, tearing her jacket.

  Grace stood up, breathing hard, her eyes frantically scanning Mable for injuries. "Mabe? You okay? Did it hit you?"

  Mable wasn't looking at the wreckage. She was looking at Grace, her blue eyes blazing with a fury that was now twofold.

  "You idiot," Mable hissed. Her voice was trembling.

  "I... I was protecting you," Grace stammered, confused. "I thought it was falling closer—"

  "You didn't care for your own safety at all," Mable snapped, her hands clenching at her sides. "You threw yourself into the path of a falling anchor for a 'maybe.' Do you have any idea what happens if you're crushed? Do you think I want to be protected by your ghost?"

  "Mabes, I’m fine," Grace tried to laugh it off, but her voice trailed away under Mable's glare. Mable wasn't just terrified; she was still simmering from the way Grace had been carelessly distributing her attention to the initiate moments before.

  Caleb let out a long, weary sigh, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "She’s right, Grace. Your tactical assessment was... emotional. We need to move."

  "Mable."

  The voice came from the top of the stairs. Sophia was standing there, her white robes gleaming. "A word. In the library. Now."

  Grace stepped forward, her jaw tightening. "She’s with us. Anything you have to say—"

  "It's alright, Ace," Mable interrupted, her hand resting briefly on Grace’s arm. The anger was still there, but it was being pushed down by a grim resolve. "I'll be back. Don't move from this spot."

  Mable followed Sophia into the massive, wood-paneled library. The heavy doors clicked shut. Twenty minutes passed in agonizing silence before Mable stepped back out. She looked colder than Grace had ever seen her—a blank slate of marble.

  As they walked, Sophia’s voice from the library flashed through Mable’s mind, echoing with a poisonous clarity "She is reckless, that one. Eventually, her luck will run out, and you'll be left holding nothing but the pieces of someone you couldn't save. Are you really sure she doesn't need a healer by her side?

  Mable froze. Her shoulders tensed, and for a long, painful second, she wavered. Her gaze flickered toward Grace—who was standing there, scuffed, reckless, and still grinning despite the blood on her cheek—and slightly injured back. Then back toward the dark, safe halls of the Sanctum. The seed of doubt Sophia had planted was visible in the way Mable’s hand gripped her own cloak, her knuckles white. She didn't move immediately; she stood in the center of the hall, the silence stretching until it felt like it would snap.

  "We're leaving," Mable finally said, her voice strained. She didn't wait for them to respond. She walked past them, but her pace was uneven, her mind clearly still trapped back in that private room with Sophia.

  Grace looked from Mable to Sophia. "What did she say to you?"

  "Nothing that matters," Mable replied, but she didn't look Grace in the eye. "Let's go. We have two more sectors to see after eating."