The lobby was packed with people, mostly young, mostly nervous. Newly Awakened, waiting for their first official scan.
Kai found the queue for re-scanning and joined the line.
"First time?" the guy in front of him asked. He was maybe nineteen, with acne scars and hands that wouldn't stop shaking.
"Second," Kai said. "Got a new Shard."
The guy's eyes widened. "Seriously? That's rare. What rank?"
"Don't know yet. That's why I'm here."
"I'm hoping for D-rank," the guy said. "My dad was D-rank, so maybe... you know. Genetics."
Kai nodded, only half-listening. His attention was on the scanning stations ahead, where technicians in white coats were processing people one by one.
Most scans took less than a minute. The person would place their hand on a flat black pad, the machine would hum, and a number would appear on the display.
F-rank. E-rank. Occasionally a D-rank, which drew murmurs from the crowd.
"Next!"
