The timer rang.
Sharp. Loud. Final.
Juli's eyes snapped open. He jolted upright. Yawned. Wide. Long. Like a baby waking from nap time. His arms stretched above his head. Back arched. Joints popped.
"Ahhhhh." The sound was satisfied. Content. Completely inappropriate for an examination hall.
Other cadets stared. Shocked. Confused. Did he just. Did he really just wake up? From sleeping? During the exam?
Juli rubbed his face. Wiped his eyes. His fingers came away wet. Small tears. Remnants of the dream. The memory. He blinked. Looked at the moisture. Shrugged.
The proctors moved through the aisles. Mechanical. Efficient. Collecting answer sheets. Gathering data pads. Silent. Professional.
One approached Juli's desk. Extended its hand. Waited.
Juli grinned. Grabbed his data pad. Handed it over. His thumb shot up. Classic gesture. "Thanks!"
The proctor's glassy eyes stared. Processed. Couldn't compute the gesture. But accepted the pad anyway. Moved on. Neutral. Unchanged.
The proctors gathered at the front. One stepped forward. Spoke. Monotone. Lifeless. "The examination has concluded. Results will be announced within forty-eight hours. You may exit in an orderly fashion. Thank you for your participation."
Silence. Heavy silence. The weight of three hours. The pressure of anxiety. The fear of failure. It all hung in the air. Thick. Suffocating.
Cadets stayed seated. Tense. Nervous. Some looked sick. Others looked broken. The stress had consumed them. Drained them. Left them empty.
Then Juli stood up.
The sound of his chair scraping echoed. Everyone turned. Eyes locked on him.
Fear rippled through the room. The monster was moving. Number two. The threat.
Across the hall. Different reactions.
Adio's eyes lit up. Excitement. Finally. The blonde boy. The fun one. He leaned forward. Wings twitched. Ready.
Polo remained calm. Observing. Measuring. His red-haired head turned slightly. Assessing.
Nara's entire body flushed. Red. Deep red. From her horns to her toes. Her face burned. Her breathing quickened. He was standing. Moving. Existing. Too much. She looked away. Looked back. Couldn't help it.
Hana giggled. Noticed her teammate's reaction. Teased with her eyes.
Kade and Pamela watched their teammate. Confused. What was he doing? The exam was over. Time to leave. Why was he just. Standing there?
Juli looked around. Scanned the faces. Saw the tension. The fear. The anxiety. The exhaustion.
Nah. This wouldn't do.
He turned to a nearby cadet. Random kid. Nobody special. Just. There. "Hey. Can you drum for me?"
The cadet blinked. "What?"
"Like this." Juli tapped his desk. Rhythm. Simple. Steady. TAP tap TAP tap TAP-TAP tap. TAP tap TAP tap TAP-TAP tap.
The cadet stared. Confused. But. The rhythm was catchy. Fun. He tried it. Tapped his desk. TAP tap TAP tap TAP-TAP tap.
"Louder." Juli grinned.
The cadet tapped harder. TAP tap TAP tap TAP-TAP tap. TAP tap TAP tap TAP-TAP tap.
Juli's body moved. Small at first. A shoulder shake. A step. His feet shuffled. Side to side. Loose. Relaxed.
Then he dropped. Low. His body close to the ground. And he spun. Breakdancing. Right there. In the exam hall.
Jaws dropped. Eyes widened. What. How. Why.
His movements were clean. Practiced. Fluid. Legs kicked out. Spun. Hands supported. Body rotated. He popped back up. Smooth. Effortless.
The drumming cadet got excited. His eyes lit up. He beat harder. Faster. TAP tap TAP tap TAP-TAP tap!
Juli's feet moved. Fast. Precise. Footwork that shouldn't be possible. His heels clicked. Toes tapped. He jumped. Landed. Spun. His whole body became rhythm. Became music. Became joy.
The mood shifted.
Someone laughed. Then another. Then more.
The tension cracked. Shattered. Released.
Fun. Pure fun. Infectious. Unstoppable.
More cadets joined. Not dancing. Not yet. But creating music. One tapped a desk. Another slapped their thigh. Someone found their rhythm. Created beats from nothing. From furniture. From stationary items. Pens clicked. Feet stomped. Hands clapped.
The hall filled with sound. With life. With energy.
Female cadets started clapping. Rhythmic. Coordinated. Some sang. No words. Just sounds. Melodies. Harmonies. Their voices wove together. Created layers. Created beauty.
Nara couldn't help herself. Her voice joined. Deep. Rich. Surprisingly musical. Hana's higher pitch harmonized. Their voices blended. Perfect contrast. Perfect complement.
Pamela found herself clapping. Smiling. Actually smiling. Wide. Genuine. Her refined composure cracked. Gave way to joy. To fun. Sienna clapped beside her. Both of them caught in the moment. In the magic.
Juli danced harder. His movements grew. Bigger. Bolder. More complex. His legs kicked high. His body twisted. He jumped. Spun mid-air. Landed. Kept moving. Never stopped. Never slowed.
Cadets started joining him. Background dancers. They copied his moves. Tried to match his energy. Some succeeded. Some failed. All of them laughed. All of them tried.
The rhythm intensified. Faster. Louder. More people joined. More voices. More beats. The hall became an orchestra. Makeshift. Chaotic. Perfect.
Then Kade stood up. Grinned. His Felinari body was built for movement. Built for this. He moved to the open space. Joined Juli.
His style was different. More aggressive. More powerful. His claws extended slightly. Added flair. His jumps were higher. His spins tighter. But he matched the rhythm. Matched the energy.
Adio couldn't sit anymore. His wings fluttered. He flew over. Landed beside them. His bird body moved differently. Unique. Beautiful. His wings became part of the dance. Extended. Retracted. Created shapes. Created art.
Three dancers. Three styles. One rhythm.
Juli in the center. Kade on his right. Adio on his left.
They synchronized. Movements mirrored. Feet stomped together. STOMP STOMP clap. STOMP STOMP clap. Their bodies rotated. Turned. Faced different directions. Then back. Together.
They jumped. All three. Perfect timing. Landed. Slid. Their feet moved fast. Intricate patterns. Complex footwork. Heels. Toes. Sides. Spins.
The crowd went wild. Cheering. Screaming. Clapping harder. Singing louder.
Juli's hands moved. Gestured. Invited. More background dancers joined. Filled the space. Created a wall of movement. Of energy. Of pure celebration.
The choreography was spontaneous. Unplanned. But it worked. They fed off each other. Off the crowd. Off the music. Off the moment.
Shoulder shakes. Hip movements. Arm waves. Leg kicks. Jumps. Spins. Drops. Everything. All at once. Organized chaos.
The anxiety was gone. The nervousness vanished. The fear about results? Forgotten. Didn't matter. Not now. Not in this moment.
This was pure. This was real. This was life. This was joy.
The entire examination hall had become a party. A celebration. A release of everything they'd been holding. All the pressure. All the stress. All the worry. Gone. Replaced with music. With movement. With laughter.
Cadets danced in the aisles. On their desks. Some lifted others. Created formations. Created moments. The females sang louder. Their voices soared. Filled every corner. Every space.
The rhythm never stopped. Never faltered. It grew. Built. Layered. More complex. More beautiful. More alive.
Juli grinned. Wide. Genuine. This. This was what life should be. What it could be. Not fear. Not anxiety. Not pressure. Just. This. Joy. Community. Connection.
The proctors stood at the front. Watching. Unable to move. Unable to process.
Their programming had no protocol for this. No response prepared. Examination complete. Cadets should exit. Should leave. Should be quiet. Professional. Orderly.
Instead. This. Dancing. Singing. Music. Chaos. Beautiful chaos.
Their glassy eyes tracked the movement. Tried to categorize. Tried to understand. Failed. Completely failed.
One proctor's head tilted. Slightly. Confused. Its systems overloading. Error. Does not compute. Unable to process.
The music continued. The dancing raged. The party lived.
And in the center of it all. Three dancers. Three friends. Moving as one. Creating magic. Creating memories.
Juli's red eyes sparkled. No more tears. No more sadness. Just joy. Just life. Just everything good.
The dream had shown him darkness. The raid. The fear. The helplessness.
But this. This moment. This showed him light. Showed him what HE had given him. Hope. Joy. The ability to create happiness. To transform pain into celebration. To turn anxiety into dance.
Heroes didn't just save people from danger. They saved people from despair. From hopelessness. From the weight of existing.
And right now. In this examination hall. In this spontaneous party. Juli was being exactly that.