Nivara couldn't help but feel nervous for the first contestant.

She fidgeted within her seat as she watched Prime put on a brave face for the audience but his dragon was jittery and unfocused. Nivara's heart lurched as she was reminded of Kaldra all alone in her room and vowed to visit her once the first few applicants had gone through her trial. The official results wouldn't be fully announced until much later but that still didn't mean the nobles couldn't have their say. 

Perched on their own separate railing were a rainbow of different coloured Soundboom dragons, awaiting orders from the different houses and Masters they represented. There were twelve in total and some were more well known than others from all around Opalis. There was even a representative for the Tinker Moles since they had recently added another of their Gadgeteer guilds to help with manufacturing and transportation of goods. Not even the nobles would argue against it but that didn't mean they couldn't attempt sway their vote in their favour. Their Master had failed to arrive after all.

Each Soundboom dragon would deliver a scroll to Nivara and she would count whatever score was the majority before announcing it. But Nivara did not have to agree with such a verdict. She had the power to overrule them as Regent and go against the majority in favour of her own ruling. However, this would cause major friction within the crowd after hearing such a result and the nobles could easily go against her opinion and authority even if her explanation was justified. It was probably what Domino was after and Nivara wouldn't have been surprised if Kamikaze showed her face just to cause a riot with her lack of security. 

She may not have been from Opalis but Nivara couldn't help but overhear the rumours that people were hoping to relocate to Tarragon in favour for her leadership and Order. A vote of no confidence against their hesitantly appointed Regent wasn't what she wanted right now but it was a necessary risk she had to take to combat whatever Chimera and the other clans intended to do.

"Candidate Prime Castillo with my Agar, Tahir Stonepass. I am an Earth Traited contracted to a Rockerfella dragon. I represent House Willowridge of Opalis. I am prepared for the challenge of the Terratwist."

Nivara quickly checked his form and noted Prime's determined voice, the Soundboom that hovered beside him now flying back towards her to return to their post. Willowridge was one of the more docile noble houses, their land remaining on the outskirts of the border near the large peaks of the Opalis Ruins which had been cut off by the Divide's range. Whereas the Tinker Moles were forced by Lady Aria to relocate to other territory, those in Willowridge had taken what land the Tinker Moles had deserted and tried to increase their workforce to match. Whether they had achieved their goal remained to be seen but the rivalry between the two groups was certainly there.

Nivara distracted herself from the thought of endless negotiations and politics by giving a quick glaze upwards and a swift nod of acknowledgement towards the Soundboom dragons as they shuffled along to allow another one of their kind to settle down for a rest. Prime's voice had been heard. It was time to start. 

"Begin!" Nivara commanded, the Terratwist changing the illusion with a single word.

The sawdust training area began to warp and elongate into the sharp incline of a mountainous range which was more a long piece of rocky ground than anything else. It led into a series of caves where Nivara's mist provided a leering backdrop and a convenient way for the onlookers to see within the caves despite the darkness. Prime had to rely on his sight alone.

"Look, it's just like home!" Tahir cried out as his Agar stayed silent, his unsure footing betraying the need to run headfirst towards security.

Prime and Tahir took and uncertain step forward while Nivara's Trait quickly gathered around the area, conjuring semi translucent screens similar to the one she used to convince Ethros of the break in. She had no doubt there were some here from Thundreign now thanks to the tell tale golden scales of Boltstrike dragons hidden within the masses. But it didn't matter now. Those terms had been set. It was time to deal with a new kind of threat.

The screen she had duplicated across the arena was a Memory Weave, a technique capable of relaying images the user could see or had seen beforehand to show others without having to explain. It was extremely useful in criminal trials but since Nivara was technically the judge instead of the accused, this was the only use she had for it. Thankfully, using the Soundboom's as assistants before the arena had been set up really helped gauge what needed to be shown and when so it was not only entertaining but provided a useful look in on the competition.

She conjured her own personal screen with whatever dregs of Trait she had left and let her grimoire lie limp on the table, still open but to the side of her as she rested her arms onto the wood in front of her, attempting to rein in what fatigue she felt by concentrating on the event. Flicking through the screen she zoomed in on the pair making their way through the comfort of the uneven ground and settled down to watch. 

Tahir was running around excitedly, rolling in the dust clouds as his claws skittered against the ground, beating out a tune of his own. Prime's mouth twitched upwards before directing him wordlessly towards the caves. The young dragon yipped before zooming off, not by flight but by his speedy but stumpy legs. 

"Bloody eejit." Prime muttered, picking up a stray rock and turned it over in his hands.

The slight motion caused the rock in his hands to lengthen instantly and solidify into a flicker of pages covered in soil as the cover materialized into view seconds later. Prime had used the rock as some kind of image training to summon his grimoire in a way that no one had ever seen before. In the time it took to summon his grimoire, Tahir had scuttled back from his search and was half dragging his Agar towards the caves. His bill like tail was slapping against the ground happily, sending stray sprouts and pebbles scattering from his back, leaving Prime no choice but to follow into the caves.

Nivara raised an eyebrow at Prime's ability to summon his grimoire, it was spread open wide almost like the great maw of a beast which glowed an endless white and coppery light to lead the way. But she knew it was more than that. Nivara tapped her own grimoires open pages and used her mist to filter through the parchment, illuminating in a soft glow of blue. It showed a series of dots and dashes almost like a crudely drawn map of her surroundings before using her other hand to skim through the series of images she was projecting. The Realism Principle was certainly the most effective but three things at once was certainly difficult to manage.

Tahir was steadily leading the way, Prime following close behind with his glowing grimoire until the caves widened into an underground cavern bright enough for them to see in front of them. It was surrounded by an endless variety of jewels and ores, causing Tahir eyes to widen in wonder.

"Pretty. Can I eat it?"

Nivara fought the urge to chuckle, moving her mist into place with a well earned sweep of her hand. The map helped her navigate where her Trait lingered the most to allow her to change the illusion more efficiently. The objects placed within the caves may have seemed real but in reality it was just a flat block of rocks with nothing pretty about it. Being versatile with her Trait truly allowed her grimoire to work its magic on the crowd.

"No. Let's get to work." Prime decided at last, still wary of the caves implications within the Terratwist.

He knelt down onto the ground, dirtying his trousers while Tahir sulked beside him. He felt the ground beneath him, the quiet rumbles of stone shifting and edging towards the surface only for Prime to stand up and move away from the spot. Tahir brought his large head down against the strangely smooth rock and sniffed it before letting out a geyser of flame from his mouth. It was akin to molten glass as it streamed along in a jagged line until the dragon stepped back and allowed his Agar to take over. 

Prime hovered over the slowly crystallizing slag and felt for the ground underneath it, causing it to tremble as small streams of molten rock burst up from the surface like tiny flowers sprouting in spring. The slowly rising stalks of red hot minerals soon cooled as Prime plucked them easily with his Trait and half threw them into the awaiting mouth of his grimoire, casually sending some to satisfy his greedy Rockerfella dragon.

Prime was a State Changer, capable of utilizing the properties of different minerals and combining it to create something entirely new. The problem was that it took quite a long time and watching a boy and his dragon crouch along the ground and collect enough samples for him to use wasn't very interesting at all.

She had to admit that the boy was in his element within the depths of the rocky mountains. His dragon Tahir was quickly nudging the earth with his snout and tail before pausing to blast the ground beneath him with his molten flame while his Agar gathered all types of sprouting minerals into his open grimoire like a shovel.

"Interesting." Nivara said, genuinely unsure as to how this would help him showcase his Trait.

Not many could use their grimoire as storage or transportation let alone summon it properly but the fact the young boy could was certainly something to note. But being able to summon a grimoire didn't mean he knew how to harness its potential. Grimoires could be fickle objects, stubborn and unreadable depending on how the user saw and treated the object that held a Trait so unique. 

Nivara had seen many people's different reactions to their grimoires. Some treated it like the curse it was made to be long ago, others treated it like a toy or treasured it like a long lost piece of childhood to the point where they grew out of it and barely used it for its purpose. But a select few knew that a grimoire was more than just a book to be shunned or hoarded. It was a gateway to possibility.

It was more than just a vessel of torn pages and broken dreams. It was as interchangeable as the Trait it held behind closed doors and open ideas. Grimoires could store objects, create shields, be shaped and scribed and even collect others Trait of a similar attribute along with hundreds of more uses that had yet to be discovered. It was how Trait weapons had first became a reality and how Mediators had first learned of the Seven Principles to become the forward thinking Sixth Order they were today. 

But like anything in this world it relied strongly on how much the Traited understood and believed in the Seven Principles. They were the foundations of this world lost long ago to complacency and greed but now they faced a new threat of ignorance and spite. The fact that Prime had enough concentration and mental strength to focus his Trait with such versatility and trust towards his partner meant that these lessons had at least been explained to him. 

The ranking system was merely a way for her to determine whether or not the next generation could learn these Principles on their own and advance to the next stage of Excelliar training. She would not be as lenient as the nobles were to their own flesh and blood, no matter if they had been taught the basics.

 His grimoire was a coppery colour, smooth and unblemished like glass but unassuming compared to many of the other nobles ornate ones. Other than its odd colour the grimoire was unusually small for a boy his age, considering his obvious knowledge of ores and gemstones. Nivara tore away from his half scrawled application form and watched tentatively as the dragon continued to steadily scavenge. She fought the urge to yawn as they carefully selected what minerals to use to best suit whatever came next. 

Time was his biggest limitation. 

Nivara could write her report in her grimoire without anyone being able to read it while having the capability to send it to another person's grimoire in a matter of seconds. But it tired her out twice as much as creating a giant mist wall. The smaller, more precise movements didn't seem like much but when you could tell what your limit was until you surpassed it, the chances of survival were slim with a Trait more suited to take her down. It had happened in her fight against Jester, Kamikaze and now in her healing of Kaldra. Her limitation was not knowing when to stop.

It was why the Silvertongue potion was constantly within her reach, why she relied on a boy as young and as inexperienced as Scout and why Domino's innocent act had caught her off guard. She didn't trust herself to keep track of everything but that also meant she was prepared to inform whoever she needed to succeed. Even her enemies. 

Domino could use all the Traits and schemes in all of Opalis but it wouldn't amount to the experience a Mist Maiden like her had under her cloak. She had gone through hell and back to get under Aria's leadership. She wasn't about to back down now to some two bit wannabe demolition girl.

The crowd was turning restless thanks to the lack of action from either of the two participants. They were slowly but steadily mining the ground for ore but in a combat standpoint this was about as interesting as watching paint dry. His Agar seemed undeterred though, continuing his steady work before the Terratwist lived up to its namesake.

It suddenly switched to torrential rain and howling winds as if attempting to make up for lost time. In a matter of seconds, the pair were dragged out of the protection of the cave as the salamander sized dragon grew to a rapid rate and protected his Agar from further harm. The buffeting winds ripped through the sheer slabs of earth and rock while Prime struggled to get his head on straight, forcing Tahir to dig his talons into the hardened surface which was slowly falling away along with his beloved caves fading into the distance.

The now smooth slab of earth was becoming a rocky crag of a peak descending into the unknown of the sky. Nivara watched with bated breath as the sandy haired boy knelt with his head down, slowly but surely trying to gather what little of the element was left. This was a tough task for any Traited who relied on their environment to truly make use of their Trait. 

"He needs to know when he's beat." Nivara muttered, readying her Trait to command the Terratwist to stop.

But he was not done yet.

Prime kept one rock of obsidian or was it limestone, Nivara could barely tell but either way his constant motion between his fingertips meant he had a trick up his sleeve which was worth waiting for. She just knew there was something more he could do. 

Tahir let out a roar of anguish as Prime clung to him, struggling to maintain enough concentration to keep his grimoire manifested. It was then that Prime showed his true strength. Slamming the smoothed section of solidified rock into the centre of his grimoire it moulded itself into a key into the last possible second and clicked into a hidden keyhole only he knew was there.

The coppery surface began to transform into a series of cogs and springs, sending the small marble of combined stone shooting along some kind of sprouting maze along the surface of his grimoire before slamming open and shut in a torrent of manmade steam. Nivara clung hard to the table, forcing herself to remain impassive and not shout out in surprise at the sudden chain of events.

Nivara was stunned at the sight of Prime's transforming grimoire, it was like a hidden maze or labyrinth and the key that had unlocked it was no ordinary key. She didn't think she'd find one so soon after the Storm Key but there was no mistaking it. No other artifact could unlock a grimoires potential so easily, but was Prime really the type of person to embody it? She wasn't so sure. 

Nivara's grimoire slowly began to emit a cool chill of fog like the surface of a frozen lake, her uncertainty causing her concentration to waver as her newly awakened ice began to overtake her grimoire in a sea of cobalt blue. Fear clawed at her heart as she slammed her grimoire shut, causing her precisely placed screens to waver.

She had to calm down. 

Nivara felt her mist starting to dwindle, the Terratwist continuing to sap her energy as she ignored the worried cries from the static of her Trait and closed her eyes. Letting out a few deep breaths, she allowed the frost to numb her fingertips, brushing against the hem of her cloak and the ridges of her mask.

She was Nivara. The last Mist Maiden.

Letting the breath go, she summoned what little she had of her mist and placed it on top of the cover of her grimoire. It was mainly blue and wasn't noticeable to the untrained eye but if this went on any longer her mist would evaporate and the Terratwist would end abruptly without so much as an explanation and a lot of loudly worded complaints.

No. She would not let that happen. She was strong. She was versatile and she was capable of handling this situation with or without her Oathed. Nivara spread her hand out wide as the mist danced on her fingertips, intertwining her with the leather cover as she slowly ebbed her mist through the spine into the clouded pages of her grimoire. 

Bit by bit the mist quelled her frostbitten hands and caused the pages to sharpen into view, folding together like waves of sunlight. Nivara gently cupped it with trembling hands as it faded back into its deep purple emulsion. Tears pricked her eyes as she clenched them shut and allowed the sheer relief to flood through her system and her mist to re correct the screens. Letting out a huff, she shook her head clear of doubt and scolded herself before focusing on the contestant, regardless of his earth shattering grimoire.

Prime had used his time ore collecting well. The winds continued to howl but he had fastened together some makeshift claws for Tahir to hook onto the ground even as the cave walls faded out behind them. Prime had used the obsidian he gathered to create some kind of eyeglasses to help him see against the rising hurricane of endless wind. 

"I can't hold on much longer, Primey! Do something!"

He didn't respond with words. Instead Prime stood up until his head was in range of the hurricane and past his steadily shrinking dragon and stared into the abyss. Nivara didn't know much about minerals but she did know what he was looking for. Her mist could do a lot of things but replicating elemental disasters so accurately was not one of them. 

Prime was looking for a loophole in her Terratwist.

Realistic scenes of lava and geysers could be done with not a lot of effort thanks to her Memory Weave but recreating a real life landslide or a fissure in the earth was beyond the capabilities of a Water Traited who only knew so much. So she had enlisted the help of a few dragons. There were plenty of Agared dragons here and to her surprise, quite a few of the Traited were more than willing to assist their Regent.

Depending on the Trait her mist would replicate the perfect environment for that person only to suddenly change into their worst nightmare. In that changeover, the flock of volunteering elemental dragons be it Boltstrikes or Sea Screamers or even Knuckle Bursts would be shrouded in her mist and was allowed to test whoever was unlucky enough to underestimate them.

Unfortunately, this time around it was Soundboom dragons. They had the largest wingspan when in their smaller form and combined with pinpoint control of their mostly silent roar created the perfect mix of hurricanes and gale force winds. The problem was, Soundbooms needed more mist than the others to hide them from view and that meant they could barely see any attacks in front of them. Paired with their hard of hearing and it was a recipe for disaster.

But Nivara wasn't a Mist Maiden for nothing. 

She watched as Prime summoned the newly molded spheres of greyish blue rock and put all her concentration into wielding her Trait, causing the screens to flicker with static once again. That didn't matter. None of it did. Prime had to be part of Domino blackmail. Prime's head swiveled towards the sky nearest  the clustered together she dragon's right where the eye of the storm swerved to greet him. 

"Get behind me, Tahir!" He called out, the charged up ball of limestone with his dragons flame ready to detonate.

Prime ran forwards and dropped into an eerily familiar stance before flinging every marble encased grenade he had into the storm. It was Domino's Knockback technique.

With a scowl, Nivara swept a curtain of pure betrayal around the helpless dragons and plucked them out of the air and onto the rafters to hide them high above the stage. She couldn't stop the explosion but she could use it to her advantage. 

The chain reaction of explosions broke through the illusion of the Terratwist as her shreds of mist flickered against the backdrop of the blast. With sheer determination, Nivara doubled the sight of the explosion by duplicating it tenfold, sparking fear and awe into the hearts of the young duo. This was what he could do. This was the consequences of having power.

The pair were blasted back and caught by a cloud of mist which continued to ebb around the dust ridden room, her screens now shattered into existence. They were safe but they had no idea what had just happened. It was necessary for what came next.

With a sweep of her hand, the crowd was silenced as the Regent of Opalis cleared the destroyed scene in an instant, shutting her grimoire with finality. Nivara didn't know whether to yell or cheer, she was full of emotion but her rage was clouded by awe until anger resurfaced and the whole drama filled event replayed in her mind. She didn't know what to think. So she donned her Everchange cloak and sat down for a rest.

The crowd whooped and cheered at the spectacle, the nobles acting much more reserved even though they were quite literally almost blown off their feet. Prime was grinning idiotically, full of dazed adrenaline as Tahir bounced around the bandstands while floods of votes came in from the rest of the Soundbooms. He was oblivious to the destruction, the boy caring only about passing the difficult test the only way he knew how. If Nivara was allowed to put money on it, she'd guess that this was the first time he had ever used such a technique. That's what she was worried about. How on earth did he get power like that?

 Lots of fours and fives clattered onto the table in front of Nivara in a flurry of jubilation but each one she glared at made her heart ache with dread. She felt sick and they couldn't even begin to see why. Her mist had reacted to the explosion as planned yes, but had that not been an illusion added to such a reckless Trait they would all be dead by the impact. 

"Enough!" She screamed out, her voice full of more emotion than she had ever dared to use even with the lies coating her words.

Nivara's eyes filled with tears, sweeping her cloak over her head angrily as she hid them from view, not wanting to shy away from her performance. Every strand of mist she had conjured early now held a deadly edge of a spiders web, precision flooding through her frost tinged veins. She took a deep breath and leaned forwards against the table, her voice quiet and shaky but she had faith that it would be heard.

"You have no idea what just happened, do you?"

Nivara felt the claws of a dragon perch on her shoulder as the murmured quiet of the crowd dared to whisper amidst her feigned sorrow. She dared not look at the dragon on her shoulder for it was never the one she needed the most.

"None of you realise how close you were to death." 

Nivara's voice echoed around the room, meeting only stubborn, dead silence. She didn't want to look up at the shocked faces of her people clinging to hope like the last thread holding the fragile binding of their grimoires together. A scattering of laughter began to emerge like some sick joke but was silenced by the sheer force of a Regents disgust, her glare reaching up to them even in the rafters.

"That explosion was a combination of marble and limestone. When put through immense pressure and heat within the air it expands into a deadly explosive combination. The very same one you just cheered a ten year old and his Agar at creating and you think he deserves the rank of an Expert? Are you insane? Have the noxious gases he created truly gone to your heads or am I the only one who is able to see clearly here?"

Those who once had whispered had their voice taken away from them but their Regent was not done talking yet. Nivara's gaze was trained not on the leering nobles above her or the uneasy crowd on either side but to the trembling sight of the Tinker Moles and the stone cold impassiveness of the Havalog. Not even the Trollians dared to make light of the situation, hiding within the cloaks and crooks of their Agars necks.

"I had to use every ounce of mist I had stored in my grimoire. That's a MONTH of stored power wasted in an instant. I had to simultaneously rescue every person in this room from the impact, dust and debris that could have easily injured and killed you all. Now I'm expected to stand up to scold a child in front of a group of ignorant onlookers who do nothing but gawk? How dare you."

Disgruntled noises of indignation were silenced by the shock of such a Trait, quiet muffled crying came from the far corner where Tahir did his best to comfort a young girl who was crying against his tail. Prime's dejected face did nothing to quell Nivara's righteous anger from deep within her, clamping down any feeling of regret as she demanded that those with a choice heard her plea for change.

"The fact none of you realised this just goes to show how warped our way of thinking truly is. He is a child. Despite his reckless actions he cannot take all the blame. He has a unique power far stronger than any of you realised but because he does not 'look' strong he is shunned to figure things out on his own."

Nivara fought back the urge to roll her eyes as she thought of the last time she visited Lord and Lady Castillo of Willowridge. There they were a few seats away from Master Shatter, her niece still awaiting to arrive for her own showcase. Who knew whether that would happen now. The nobles of Willowridge cared about keeping up appearances with their Tinker Mole relations by hiring them for their mines. The Divide repelled all Trait so it was a mystery how Prime had learnt about his. 

"Yet you praised him and would have given him the power to do what many have already tried to do today in this week alone!"

Nivara's voice broke, emotions almost spilling over as she thought of how painful it was to have seen innocent lives targeted by a vicious set of ideals and a devastating duo of Traited. That was the world they lived in but it didn't need to be. She had to make this work.

"Madcap and Rook, two of my best apprentices decided to use their Traits to take matters into their own hands without thinking of the consequences. They injured countless Traited including myself and many of these contestants here today just because their Traits and views differ from outside of the normality! You ignore it all and that is unacceptable."

She sighed, her voice dying in strength as she remembered how Thundreign had meddled in their affairs once again. Unacceptable or not she knew how often it happened and how little people with more basic Traits cared about learning when all they had to do was blast things to succeed. They had done so again with Prime but she had made it look more dangerous than it actually was. For the sake of her plan it needed to be done.

"I am one person. I can not protect you all simply because I bear the title of Regent. Had I not fought to gain the deciding vote, I would not be here giving this warning to you all and you would not be here. At all." She reminded them ominously, a shudder crawling up her spine.

Fear only worked when it was proof, not speculation. They only had her word for what happened a few moments ago. Her words had already been ignored and tainted with Silvertongue time and time again. All they saw was a strong Trait that could be used to topple mountains or decimate cities. Trait was more than just who was the strongest but Nivara was tired of convincing them. Tired of playing both sides. 

"I am not heartless. I understand the pressures of power and control. I understand how limitations can shift your way of thinking and eventually your Trait. If I did not think Prime and Tahir had the potential to be great whatever they decide to do, then they would not be here."

Nivara paused for a moment to gather her thoughts and sit down at her lonely desk, the weight on her shoulders too great for her to manage such a narrow minded bunch of traditionalists. She had never wanted this role but here she was making decisions in a spotlight of her own design. Whatever she chose it would still be wrong. Damn it then. Damn them all. 

"But rewarding recklessness is not the way. As such, I will allow Prime the Second Rank of Challenger. That is final." Nivara said, satisfied with her choice as the Soundboom prepared to announce the verdict herself.

The slow hesitant thump of Tahir's tail began the start of the applause for Prime as a chant of 'Challenger Rank' began from deep within the recesses of the crowd. It was quiet at first but soon grew in strength and numbers as Nivara gave the two a half smile as they both bowed their heads apologetically. Nivara didn't have the heart to call them over for questioning. Not until the mist of confusion had cleared from their minds at least.

"Prime has passed the Terratwist and is eligible to be chosen by a Master and begin his apprenticeship early. But I warn you, if you do not intend to teach him as diligently as others will in his remedial classes, his status will be revoked and I will not be merciful on whoever allows such an incident to occur." Nivara finished at last, hoping that a shred of her feigned speech got through to someone.

It didn't matter what rank she gave Prime. He would still be able to use the Principles regardless of where he learnt it from. His grimoire had dematerialised within the blast so there was no way of knowing if his interchangeable grimoire was just a fluke. It wasn't mentioned on his form and Nivara had no intention of humiliating the boy further. She had already intended to regardless of who came first in the roster. Prime just happened to be that person.

There now was only one thing for her to do.

She needed to challenge whatever Domino was planning. No matter the cost.