Whispers of the Night

The dorm lamps had been dimmed for hours, yet sleep clung only to the corners of the room. Kaiden lay awake on his bunk, arms folded behind his head, listening to Rio's light snores below and Nerim's restless shifting across the aisle.

Outside, the wind combed through the merantis trees, making the beams creak and settle — the academy's lullaby. Somewhere in the rafters, a faint tapping echoed — maybe a branch, maybe a loose tile. He didn't mind. It sounded like roots tapping at stone, testing for cracks.

Kaiden's mind spun in slow circles — the echo of Coach Trillian's whistle, Irna's sharp slide through the twins, Peggy's grin, Rio's stubborn bubble of still air. Not to mention Nerim's smug cackle when the rune traps fizzled out. The warmth of the grass under his feet when he realized they hadn't lost yet.

He glanced at the bunk post. Someone had carved a crude mark into it years ago: G41 | WZ — initials of some long-forgotten Ironroot brat, probably some old seedling who'd stood where Kaiden was now.

[ * Kaiden (internally) * ]

"Sprout well."

"Yeah… You bet we did."

The quiet almost felt earned. Almost. Kaiden shifted, then stilled. Across the room, someone muttered in their sleep. A loose floorboard creaked again — heavier, now. Then a soft thud of Rio's foot hitting the wall. He always sprawled sideways when he was finally out.

Kaiden let his eyes close. He could still see the field, the way the benches leaned forward when Irna slipped through the lines, the stifled pride on Trillian's face, the murmuring observers up on the deck. For the first time in a while, he felt like he could drift off and let tomorrow come on its own.

Until the dorm door rattled open with a sharp THUD, hinges squealing in protest.

Rio bolted upright so fast he nearly cracked his head on the bunk frame.

[ Rio (half-asleep) ]

"Wha — huh — fire?!"

Kaiden shot up to his elbows, just as Nerim scrambled upright from his lower bunk. Three big silhouettes ducked through the doorway. Lantern glow spilled across broad shoulders, half-buttoned Ironroot vests, and the casual swagger of sixth-years who owned every corridor they walked.

Kaiden smelled them before he focused — woodsmoke, sweat, and that faint tang of æsther that always clung to seasoned upperclassmen. His eyes flicked to the floor. Tiny green flecks dotted the dusty planks like stray fireflies. Someone must've done this before — a trail of old dust wedged in the cracks.

The tallest — shaggy-haired, with shoulders like scaffold beams — flicked a burlap pouch against his palm. Kaiden caught the shimmer when the powder shifted in the lantern light.

[ Ironroot Senior #1 (grinning) ]

"Evening, little sprouts."

"Trying to get some sleep?"

Nerim squeaked, immediately burrowing back under his blanket up to his eyes. Rio's breath caught — he glanced at Kaiden, eyes wide like a startled raccoon.

Kaiden didn't move. He sat up, spine straight, chin tipped at the big boys like he'd done this every term of his life.

[ Kaiden ]

"…Seniors."

One leaned forward, voice low but not exactly friendly.

[ Ironroot Senior #2 ]

"Heard you embarrassed the big boys at galah panjang."

His eyes flicked between them, weighing them like bags of feed. Kaiden glimpsed a small, glinting ring on his thumb — not academy standard, probably a keepsake from a past initiation.

[ Ironroot Senior #3 (smirking) ]

"Skyward Arcanum? Dawnseeker? Champions?"

"Dangerous hobby, showing off like that."

"Somebody needs to tie you guys to the ground."

"You're… drifting away."

"Hahaha…"

Kaiden's fingers curled under his blanket. His mind ticked — door hinges, loose plank, Rio's bunk could flip, Nerim could crawl under. But the math never looked good when you were three kids and they were three shadows bigger than your beds.

[ Rio (whispers) ]

"Kaiden, we gonna fight 'em?"

Kaiden didn't answer. The air felt tight, like a rope drawn taut between bunk and door. But the lead senior just grinned wider, lips twitching as if he tasted the fear and found it amusing. He snapped open the pouch.

A minty, peppery tang hit Kaiden's nose — fresh like wildroot crushed between stones. The dust glittered in the dim lantern light, a swirl of green sparks that clung to shadows.

[ Ironroot Senior #1 ]

"Hold still, seedlings."

He tossed it — the dust cloud burst like seeds on the wind. Rio gagged. Nerim squeaked and rolled right off his bunk, knees thumping the floor. Kaiden felt it sift through his hair, settle cold on his scalp, and prickle sharp as nettles before it warmed like moss in the sun.

He brushed a few flecks from his brow. They pulsed faintly when they hit the blanket.

[ Ironroot Senior #2 (laughing) ]

"Don't bother scrubbing."

"Proof you're one of us now."

"You run like Ironroot, you fight like Ironroot…"

"You grow like Ironroot."

"And now you look like roots."

"Well."

"For a week, at least."

"Haha…"

He thumped Kaiden's shoulder — too hard, but not cruel. The force rattled Kaiden's teeth, but left a hidden warmth blooming under his ribs.

[ Ironroot Senior #3 ]

"See you on the field, greenhorns."

Boots squeaked on the planks as they left. The laughter lingered like smoke — then the door swung shut, darkness creeping back around the bunks.

Kaiden sat there, blinking at the dust drifting down. Rio snorted, then barked out a half-laugh as he grabbed a handful of his hair — it gleamed bright green under the flickering lamp.

[ Rio ]

"Ha! We're shrubs."

Nerim peeked up from the floorboards, hair dusted so thick he looked like a fuzzy moss rock.

[ Nerim ]

"Is… is this good?"

Kaiden snorted, pinching up a stray sparkle from the floorboards. Old flecks twinkled alongside it — ghosts of past pranks ground into the grain. Roots spreading, one layer at a time.

He focused on that hush just behind his heartbeat — the way the world folded if you pushed at the seam. A flicker of warmth spiraled through his chest.

[ * Kaiden (internally) * ]

"Identify."

[ HEART ]

[ Ironroot Initiation Dust ]

Durability: 1/1

Market Value: Nil

Grade: Uncommon

[ Passive ] +0.0001 LUK (Bond)

Resonance: Awaiting

"Luck?"

He cracked a grin.

"The system even considered Luck as a stat?"

Kaiden smoothed the blanket back over Rio's bunk rail, ignoring the boy's silly, leafy grin. He sank onto his pillow. Tomorrow would come, with new tests and bigger storms. But tonight?

They were seedlings no more — rooted, claimed, and growing.

A faint mark on the bunk post glowed for a second in the lamplight — that old initial scratched years ago. Just another sapling that made it.

◈◈◈

They tumbled out at dawn, blinking at the sun like half-dreaming pixies. Rio puffed out his chest when a cluster of older Ironroot kids whooped from the stairwell.

[ Ironroot Senior (calling) ]

"Wear it proud, sprouts!"

"Roots never hide!"

Nerim tried to tug his cloak up to cover the glow — gave up when Rio ruffled his hair like a rooster's crest. Halfway to the mess hall, Peggy and Irna rounded the corner — they stopped short, eyes wide.

Peggy snorted first.

[ Peggy ]

"Wow…"

"Sprout well, huh?"

Irna tapped each boy's hair, giggling at the green dust on her fingertips.

[ Irna ]

"Does it come off?"

Rio puffed up like a hedge crow.

[ Rio (proud) ]

"Senior blessing."

"Means we're Ironroot now."

Peggy just doubled over laughing.

[ Peggy ]

"You look like a hedge they forgot to trim."

Kaiden hid his grin under his hood — but deep under his ribs, the new Luck flickered faintly.

Tomorrow would come. And their roots?

Ready to run deeper.