Page 147 of Architecti
Forty-Eight Hours To Go
The last week was exhausting.If the weight of my ticking clock weren’t enough, I now carry Ignatius’s secret too.The lie the entire city believes…it’s all unravelling.
Ignatius has been skittish all week.Every time I see him around campus, he glares.A threat, a warning, or perhaps an omen of what he plans to do if we spill his secret.He hates the fact I’ve been helping Lucy unlock her contract, but his tight shoulders and pallid skin tell me it’s less rage and more fear.
What is he afraid of?
We still haven’t unlocked the final rune, despite best efforts.But I know the truth lays in it.And I can’t think about any of it because today is the day I win the favour.I have to.
I’ve spent a year obsessively studying.Lucy fulfilled her promise of helping—we spent every second of the last week practicing and training.It’s on me now.My biggest competition is Hadrian, and to my surprise and disdain, Aurelia.There’s no fucking way I’m letting Aurelia beat me.
Not today.
Not again.
Today is a two-part exam.While they’ve been testing us on all our subject areas, our final marks for the top student are allocated based on our performance in our two best subjects.Mine being weaving and walking.
My friends and I make our way to Finis.We all clutch each other knowing this could be the last day we’re together.
Bastien pulls me into a hug so tight I have to tap out.
“Gods, Bastien, don’t suffocate a bitch before her exam,” I mumble into his chest.
“Sorry, I’m proud of us, that’s all.Thank you for the support this year, it’s been…”
“Yeah,” Lex says, pulling us both in again.“It has.And two days from now, when it’s all over and Midnight is still with us, we’re going to get shitfaced.Got it?”
The three of us smile, but mine never meets my eyes and I’m not sure either of them believes the words.
We part ways and each descends the stairs to our levels.Even though my primary subject is Veilwalking, my assessment is on level minus five.
I step down, down, down, but the stairs seem to meander and drift and the fifth floor never appears.The hair on the back of my neck prickles.Today isn’t the day to fuck about, Finis.
My heart rate escalates.I move faster.I swear I already passed floor three.But there it is again.
And then again.
I stop.Rub a hand over my face and force my heart to slow.I will not let the campus get under my skin today.I hold a hand against the brick and silently tell Finis I will not be fucked with today.
Then I move again.Whether it’s my veiled threat or the fact a breeze wafts over me that feels like a smug huff and tastes like satisfaction, or the fact I’m now unnerved, floor five finally appears.
When I locate the central hall, a ton of Doorstops are already waiting.They fidget in their seats, rub their knuckles anxiously and throw skittish looks across the room.I’ve shown enough proficiency in Veilwalking that they’re primarily assessing my weaving today, with walking threaded in for easy bonus points.
I scan the observation deck; Lucy catches my eye and gives me a wink.She’s sat with a pile of parchment, marking exams, I imagine.
The professors have thought about today and put out a ton of refreshments, though they mostly go untouched.Too many pallid complexions and furrowed brows.At least I’m not the only one feeling sick.
We’re taken in one at a time to be assessed while the rest of us just wait.
The ticking clock on the wall grinds on my nerves.I have enough reminders of what tomorrow will bring without an incessant ticking.
Midnight.
That voice, no, Architecti, calls.I ignore it.In forty-eight hours I’ll be dead if I don’t win this, so what does it matter if she doesn’t get Lucy?
Professor Alistair Ironheart walks out of the assessment room and calls my name.
“Mercedes Midnight?”
