"I thought you said three?" Devvyn whispered to Aela.
The first Judge Devvyn saw was a fat, pompous-looking man with beady dark eyes and barely three strands of hair on his head. His buttoned coat struggled for dominance over his belly, and he clobbered the ground rather than walked.
The second was…weird.
He wore a simple cotton shirt and pants with leather slippers. The shirt said I heart Mana Tech. Not quite what Devvyn would expect an Academy instructor to wear, but it was edgy and cool. Devvyn decided he liked him.
The third was a highborn Lady whom Devvyn recognized. He'd seen her once or twice at the market his grandmother bought parts for her work. She had sharp green eyes and auburn hair tied into a loose braid. She reminded Devvyn of Jelric's mother—that warm, motherly presence.
And then there was the last judge. He was tall and gaunt, with pale skin and dark circles under his piercing gray eyes, giving him a spectral appearance. He wore a long, dark robe embroidered with faintly glowing runes. The robe fell past his feet, making it look like he was floating as he walked.
Lord Veylin.
"That's definitely Lord Veylin," Aela said.
Devvyn felt uneasy as he watched Lord Veylin glide into the booth and take a seat. He didn't like the way the man looked, not one bit. The other judges sat to his left, establishing, as Aela had said, that Lord Veylin was the head judge.
"Master Varos! So good to see you again. My father sends his warmest regards." Isadora shoved Aela out of the way to get to the judges' tables.
"Kiss ass." Aela coughed.
Someone snorted.
"He looks like he'd turn to ashes if he stays in the sun for too long," Devvyn said, still focused on Lord Veylin. Now that Veylin was closer, he noticed a long scar running down his left cheek, thick and angry. It looked like it still hurt.
Lord Veylin whispered something to the cool-looking judge, who raised his brows, then bowed his head. He stood, slightly swaying on his feet as if drunk.
"Hello, young inventors, and welcome to the 23rd annual Golden Academy competition for technological innovation and invention. I am Instructor Cassemir. As you all know…." He hiccuped. "...as you all know, the prize is three thousand gold marks. The real prize, however, is the honor of presenting your work to esteemed Academy instructors like myself and Lord Veylin here," he gestured to Veylin, "Master Varos and the visionary Lady Corenna Valeir, who travelled a long distance to be here."
Corenna Valeir smiled politely.
"Now, what that means is you'd better not waste our time with useless inventions. I want innovation! Something never seen before." He clasped his hands together. "Inventors, stand ready. You will step forward one by one to present your work."
There was a bit of silence, then murmuring, and feet shuffling until the first person stepped forward with brisk, confident strides up to the judges' table.
"Lyndel Kestros, second-year apprentice at the Golden Academy." She carried her invention like a baby, cradled in both arms. "This," she declared, "is a manual water-purifying engine powered by rune magic. Anyone, old or young, without an Echo bond can use it."
Lady Corenna leaned forward. She was from Baridi, where rune magic was popular. "Place it on the table," she instructed. Lyndel Kestros smirked.
One by one, the contestants stepped forward to present their inventions. One was a pair of flying boots for air Echo wielders. "Interesting but not impressive." Master Varos declared. Another invented a portable mana cell. It was a good design, but that already existed.
"What about the term innovation is difficult to understand ?" Master Varos yelled.
Eloria, one of the competitors, presented a panel for drawing sunlight into airships, allowing them to be powered by the sun instead of mana-fuel or air Echo wielders. Master Varos liked it, but Eloria broke down into tears after Instructor Cassemir asked her a series of questions.
Apparently, she'd had someone build it for her. Master Varos declared her a compound fool for not at least learning the mechanics of the device's workings and promptly banned her from entering future competitions.
Devvyn caught Isadora watching him. He met her eyes unflinchingly. She looked away first.
"Are there no useful participants this year?" Master Varos yelled.
"Must you be so loud, Varos?" Instructor Cassemir said, covering his ears.
One device caught fire, which Instructor Cassemir easily put out with his Echo. Another whirred into the sea and disappeared in its depth. "Good riddance," Varos laughed.
Lord Veylin's expression remained unreadable throughout, and Lady Corenna looked like boredom was tying a noose around her neck.
Devvyn's attention slowly waned until just his body was present at the competition. His mind danced with different thoughts. He wondered if his grandmother had discovered by now that he had taken the device. He hoped not. She did a check in her workshop by the end of the day, usually.
Unless she needed the device specifically, she wouldn't know it was gone before he returned it. Jelric also bothered him. It was strange the way he chased after his dad, almost as if he wanted to stop him from doing something. And Isadora, gods, he wished he could march up to her and tell her he didn't deserve to be looked down on just because he wasn't highborn.
He spiralled until he felt a sharp nudge on his side. Devvyn started. Was it his turn already?
"Look," Aela said. It was Isadora's turn.
Isadora stood before the judges with a quiet confidence, a small box tucked in her arm. The box was about the size of a sugar cube, which gathered everyone's curiosity. She didn't bother to introduce her name or what royal House she belonged to. Devvyn would have mistaken it for nervousness. He knew better now.
She opened the cube, and a full-length exoskeleton suit tumbled out. Some of the contestants gasped.
"Now, how in the name of Ignisara did that fit in there?" Aela folded her arms.
Devvyn answered absentmindedly, "air compression technology."
Isadora wore the exoskeleton and pressed a button close to her chest. "This is a mana-powered exoskeleton designed like the one we have in Sinai's military, but it works differently. The military exoskeleton gives non-Echo wielders enhanced physical capabilities, increasing their strength, speed, and endurance. This one," Isadora grinned, "does something even better."
She took several steps back from the table and gestured for people to give her space. Then, she said, "Instructor Cassemir, would you do me the honor of blasting me with a fire attack?"
"What?" Lady Corenna stood up.
"Thank you for your concern, Lady Corenn, but I assure you, it's completely safe. I tested the suit multiple times. My father's healers can attest to that." Isadora stretched out her hand, revealing a burn mark.
Instructor Cassemir laughed. "Now this is what I'm here for. Stand back all," he said as he whipped up a miniature fireball.
"Anytime you're ready, Instructor Cassemir," Isadora called out.
He let the fireball free.
The crowd gasped and shifted even further from Isadora. Devvyn watched closely. He saw Isadora's suit light up slightly as the fireball approached. She pressed the button again, and the suit completely absorbed the fireball, leaving only a puff of smoke behind.
"Watch!" Isadora yelled and ran to the edge of the railway, close to the sea, where no ships or people were in view.
She clicked the button again and released a blast of energy that sliced across the water. "The suit absorbs attacks as long as you press this button before it gets to you, turns it into pure energy and redirects it wherever you want once you touch the button again." She grinned.
"That's incredible!" Instructor Cassemir exclaimed, clapping so vigorously that everyone else joined in.
Isadora took a flamboyant bow.
Still, Lord Veylin remained stoic.
Devvyn begrudgingly admitted the invention was impressive. Isadora, too, with her presentation. She had kept everyone on edge. A good inventor knows how to make a show. His grandmother's words. Aela hissed. "Oh, look at me. I'm a highborn with access to military grade stuff. I built a war weapon." She mimicked Isadora's voice.
"Really impressive, Isadora," Lady Corenna. "I have one question: what happens when I don't press the button in time?"
Isadora's grin fell.
Devvyn went last.
After Isadora, it was hard for anyone else to impress the judges, but he was sure the Echo Locator was a better invention. Thaloria's highborn loved Echos way too much for them to choose a war weapon over them.
The crowd had increased. Isadora's exoskeleton drew more people to the competition. However, there were now fewer contestants and more onlookers. Devvyn's heart thrummed in his chest. He felt Aela's small hands wrap around his and squeeze softly. "You've got this."
He took out the Echo Locator and approached the judges. He fumbled with the cloth covering it, and the Locator fell. Devvyn caught it, wincing in his mind.
"Get on with it, boy." Master Varos barked.
"I'm Devvyn Arkwright." He saw the judges perk up at the name. Everyone knew about his grandmother and her inventions, even though she retired long ago. "And this is an Echo Locator." He opened up the cloth, revealing a rust-colored compass. It looked part-arcane, like one of the old technologies. Devvyn had helped Maelis sketch the design. Its steel body was ringed with runes and set with four refined elemental gemstones.
"Devvyn pointed to the sea, "Imagine Echo Hunters no longer having to dive for months to find one Echo. What if they didn't have to dig for days, or risk their lives in volcanoes to find fire Echos?"
Devvyn saw a barely perceptible movement from Lord Veylin. He almost whooped. He knew everyone else saw it too because they were starting to whisper. "My Locator is calibrated to detect elemental resonances from Echos in minutes, even when buried miles deep. These here," he touched the four gemstones, "they glow depending on the type of Echo. Once resonance is detected, the Locator triangulates the signal using aetheric inference patterns powered by the runes and projects a two-dimensional map of nearby Echos. And it's not just Echos out in the wild." Devvyn said as he went to Lord Veylin. He wasn't sure what possessed him, but he needed to show the Locator worked beyond theory. He tuned the Locator and projected a map.
He adjusted the circumference to cover just the judges. The Locator beeped. Three glowing points appeared on the map, and when Devvyn tapped on one, the water gemstone glowed. He continued, "It can also detect bonded Echos. That's you, Lord Veylin, with the water Echo."
From the corner of his eyes, Devvyn saw Aela grinning proudly.
"Can I see?" Lord Veylin asked. His voice was like a hot knife through butter. Smooth. It unnerved Devvyn.
Devvyn froze. "Y-yes." he stuttered and handed it over.
Lord Veylin clutched the Locator with slender fingers stained gold. Devvyn recognized the stain. His grandmother's fingers were like that, too, from years of working with Mana. He turned the Locator, and a gleam appeared in his eyes.
"How long did it take for you to build this?" Lady Corenna asked.
"Six months but only because the parts were hard to find," Devvyn answered. And because his grandmother had fallen ill along the way. He scratched the itch in his palms.
Instructor Cassemir tilted his head at Devvyn. "Are you related to Maelis Arkwright?"
Devvyn nodded.
Cassemir clicked his tongue, then asked, "And did you test with Echos in the wild? Or just bonded ones?"
Actually, his grandmother hadn't tested the Locator at all, but Devvyn was sure it worked—everything she built did. Devvyn shook his head, "My first test was today with your Echos, so um, no." His confidence wavered, making his voice shake.
"We can't know if it works if it's not tested. It's one of the golden rules of invention. Everyone knows that." Isadora said.
Aela pinched Isadora so hard that she yelped in pain. "Shut up!"
"It does." Devvyn hissed.
"Try it then," Master Varos nudged him toward the sea.
"Um," Devvyn swallowed, "it's highly probable that all Echos within range have been harvested." He collected the Locator from Lord Veylin and tuned it again, extending the circumference to the widest point. He waited. Everyone, too, waited silently for a glow to show on the map.
Two minutes passed, and no glow.
"So it doesn't work?" Master Varos said.
"No!" Devvyn shouted, then immediately calmed when Master Varos pinned him with a scathing look. "Echo hunting began from this Port. Years ago. There's definitely nothing left in range."
"It's true," Aela shouted, and people nodded in support.
"Then we have no way of knowing that it works." Instructor Cassemir said.
"That's not…if I can just get to the Verdant Shroud or the Coral Coves, I can…I can…" But the Verdant Shroud was miles away. The Coral Coves might have been closer, but it was still on the opposite end of the Port, and it was absurd to think everyone would follow him all the way there just to test his Locator. Devvyn shut up then.
Lady Corenna jumped in, "I think it's an outstanding invention and we need to look beyond testability. This device can revolutionize Echo hunting. Make it safer, increase output, lower the cost of Echos, make them accessible to more people. I like it. I have a clear winner." She smiled at Devvyn.
"When you put it like that…" Instructor Cassemir said.
Mastor Varos muttered something under his breath, but Lord Veylin was back to being imperceptible.
Devvyn was sure he would win. Lord Veylin had shown interest in his Locator. Lady Corenna liked it, and Instructor Cassemir agreed with her. Only Master Varos was left, so that was a three-to-one vote. He had won. He could already imagine the feel of holding an Echo in his hands. Finally.
But when Instructor Cassemir called out the winner. It wasn't Devvyn's name.
It was Isadora Pyrethorn.
