The examination final session to obtain the Judicer's plate took place in a large area called the Council Room. It was located in the area of the Imperial Military Akademy closer to the senate, in the relative south. Cleaning staff was busy there before sunrise. I arrived around seven o'clock and noticed fear in their eyes when I greeted them. The first judges appeared just before eight, each holding a pile of papers the size of a dictionary. The way to access the Council Room was carefully hidden and forbidden from the common worker at the Akademy – in fact, the only means to reach it was a small airship that flew there from the Second Division's quarters; however, I had heard that Judge Bergan himself would be absent for Vitu's session. The latter was purely a judiciary examination, all the fighting tests having been undertaken in the previous weeks.

'Who are you?' a judge suddenly asked to my direction, noisily throwing his papers on the first table.

'I am Gabranth, officer cadet of the Sixth Division.'

'Judge Drace…?'

Apparently, her name was enough to make many veterans in the army shake and reconsider their existence.

'You can stay. But why are you here? This is the judgehood examination for a young fellow from the Ninth.'

'I… I am his best friend.'

I was actually unsure of this fact, but I had better appear surer than ever in front of that peculiar man. The judge simply continued his way into the room without uttering a single additional word.

At eight and half, Vitu finally appeared and we were allowed to enter the big space.

It was a round room with sophisticated chairs all around it. Two ones at the bottom were of a darker color and separated from the others by at least two meters.

'How do you feel?' I whispered to my friend.

Vitu took a moment before answering, in the same low tone:

'I never thought that a situation could be more stressful than my twin's race meetings in front of a crowd.'

'Shall you make it?'

Another silence invaded the room. The last cleaners left, after making sure all the tables were shiny clean and each seat had a bottle of drinking water.

'I have to. I have to become a judge. That's my life's meaning and my destiny.'

I smiled at his tragic seriousness before being forced to stay quiet: the judges were looking at us irritably and visibly rehearsing their interviewer's role.

At nine o'clock precisely, they all stood at once. Vitu, a bit lost, decided to follow them and stood up from his chair with his fist against his heart – the military salute. And I, even more lost, hesitated but eventually did the same, without understanding the situation. Both my seat and Vitu's were facing the bottom of the room – which meant its entrance was behind us, and we could not see what was going on. However, in the heavy silence, metallic footsteps progressed to our direction, then to the lone seats direction. The man greeted the examiners, then sat down and raised his look.

Despite Vitu being the privileged guest of the session, his first glance was for me. While I was bearing the weight of his insightful grey eyes, I noticed he was a man of honorable age – at least fifty. His mid-length wavy hair was a mix between brown and white, and there was a conscious sternness in his posture, while his whole behavior, even considering the bulky armor with devilish red lines and the long black cape, did not give away the slightest feel of cruelty.

I gasped. The fact that Vitu, far from being only silent, was completely absent-minded, his nervousness to the climax and his limbs paralyzed, clearly stated who that man was. I looked back at Judge Zargabaath as he shifted his look to my friend, with a swiftly placed smile.

Despite the Judge Magister's polite entrance, the session did not begin. The interviewers were thumbing through their papers rapidly, while whispering with concerned faces with no intervention from Judge Zargabaath. As if all of this was normal. As if he was… waiting for someone.

I turned to Vitu, hoping that my questioning eyes would be enough for him to utter an explanation. However, my friend was grim, as if surrounded by overwhelming darkness he dared not fight. I turned to the door instead, driven by that mysterious urge that manifests only at precise moments of our lives. As my neck shifted, my look crossed right through Judge Magister Drace's who was entering. The door closed after her, probably by some magic.

For the first time of my life, I was in the same room as a Judge Magister, and even two Judge Magisters. Judge Drace went to sit next to her counterpart, on the only free seat, right in front of me.

'Your Honors… I believe we can begin.'

Judge Zargabaath's voice was soft, serene and severe at the same time. Next to me, Vitu's body was already shaking.

The examination lasted slightly more than an hour. The interviewing judges began by presenting to Vitu practical cases of judiciary conflicts, and the candidate had to explicit the plaintiff's resorts, proof collection, and competent court to consider. The cases were – in order – civil, trade, criminal, and military matters. The next part was a series of theoretical questions where the candidate had to remember the precise articles related to a legal offense – the topics chosen were family and public administration. Then, he was asked details about his written dissertation's choices. Finally, Vitu was asked by his Judge Magister whether he felt ready to take up the judge position and why.

The last part was clearly what my friend did best. His motivation was topping the ceiling, and his career path was clear – it looked like he overcame his leadership issues and was determined to apply the law in order to serve the most impartial justice in the Empire. I admired the gleam in his light brown eyes, the seriousness in his forehead lines, and the strength he was overall showing, from his solid feet to the tip of his nose. That demonstration was obviously his best asset to convince Judge Zargabaath. As for Judge Drace, after having stayed still with the troubled look she had since she met my eyes, she had asked some of the theoretical questions – actually most of them – and seemed globally satisfied with the answers.

When I looked at the wall clock showing ten twenty, I could not believe my eyes. The session was so dense that it was quite hard to make it fit only an hour, but they made it somehow, as the questions' rhythm was relatively fast. I guessed that a Judge Magister's time was not cheap. Vitu had kept up bravely and did not falter.

'I'm proud of you, my friend', I said as the door shut after the last judge left the Council Room.

'Gabranth… Gabranth!'

Vitu, who was standing at the center while being interviewed, came back to his chair and let himself fall on it, holding his face with his hands. When he removed them, I could see his watery eyes filled with tenseness, but also hope.

'You'll make it', I assured him.

'Did I make a mistake?' he immediately asked.

I looked away in silence.

'Did I make a mistake?' he repeated in a vivid tone. 'Please tell me, Gabranth. I need to know.'

'The Court of Appeals. It was the civil one, not the military one. Judge Drace's fifth question.'

For a moment, Vitu gasped and blinked.

'How… Oh no, you are right… Now it's all wasted… How could I make such a beginner's mistake? Why is Judge Drace here anyway? Do you know, Gabranth?'

'I do not. But I have heard she knows more about law than any other person in Archadia, having scored 99% at the judge examination herself. Do not worry about that mistake – it was an isolated one, and apart from it, there were only minor imprecisions.'

The judges had left us alone for a full hour. When they returned, I felt that Vitu's patience had reached its limit. Judge Drace entered first, followed by all the examiner judges, and Judge Zargabaath came in last. Once again, the examiners whispered while exchanging papers and worried looks. But this time, some of those looks were aimed at Vitu.

'We have come to a decision concerning candidate Vitu Palnissen', a judge said.

After having stood up, we sat down on our chairs, and for a few seconds, there was only devastating silence in the big room.

'Officer Palnissen', Judge Zargabaath said.

Vitu immediately stood again but the Judge Magister sent him down in a mere gesture of his hand.

'In accordance with the result of the combat tests undertaken during Gemini month 695 as graded by Judge Magister Bergan, General Tannhäuser, General Tannhäuser…'

I assumed that was the Zodiac Sisters' surname.

'… General Korr, and myself; in accordance with the result of the ensuing written law dissertation as graded by the military committee of the Imperial Law Akademy; and in accordance with the result of the oral law examination held today; I hereby declare you a successful candidate in joining the Order of Judges of Archadia, with a final mark of 93%.'

Vitu did not say a word, but I could feel the weight of all of Archades's skyscrapers collapsing from his shoulders. I felt myself a genuine joy in hearing that outcome from Judge Zargabaath's mouth. Vitu truly deserved it.

'Congratulations', the Judge Magister added.

'Thank you, my Lord!' he exclaimed.

'Congratulations', Judge Zargabaath repeated.

'Zargabaath, we understood', Judge Drace intervened dryly.

'I did not speak of the same matter', his colleague explained – and I kept my ear open wide. 'I congratulated our candidate for two different purposes. The first is reaching the rank of judge. The second is related to the vacant position that our dear Judge Umgodi left. Umgodi was a noble worker who did his best to assume his rank's responsibilities. However, he resigned after the chaos following last year's events and the restructuration in the army. I am therefore looking for a fitting warrior to assume his place, one with a strong will and an enthusiastic mind. I saw, Vitu, ever since you joined my division, that you were eager to learn, and faultlessly faithful to our principles. That valuable attitude earns you my proposal today: in addition to being a key judge of my division, will you work by my side at everyday affairs as well as on the battlefield? Will you be my dömavän?'

In the lost look on Vitu's face, in the ramping emotion stuck into his throat, I could notice easily that in his magnificent innocence, my friend had had no plan of releasing the tears that were rolling down his cheeks. As he was holding back a sob, he stood up, saluted his new daily companion and shouted with all his might:

'Yes, my Lord!'