As Dawn promised, she woke Elizabeth up early to head out. Luckily the travel through Folding was brief this time, taking them out of the city but just to a dirt road path leading to the mountain.

  “Are we not going to use folding for the next part?” She asked, hopeful and relieved.

  “Nah, it’s only a mile to the base of Mount Dawnbreaker; might as well not leave you too sick or anything. Besides, you can take in the sights while we walk and mentally prepare yourself for it.”

  “It’s called ‘Dawnbreaker’?”

  “Yeah, for how the sun will break over it and light up the land again.” It was fairly dark out still behind the mountain, leaving Elizabeth to wonder how early it actually was. She’d thought it was still basically nighttime, but this close to the enormous mountain darkening their path, she figured it might be later than she thought.

  Despite the time, the bit of light peeking around the sides of the mountain didn’t lend itself to a particularly great ‘view’ to take in, and even if it did, it just seemed like a barren path with withered trees lining the path, planted every couple of meters to their sides. Mount Dawnbreaker was huge even from that distance, so it helped emphasize the enormity of the role she was taking, if nothing else, Elizabeth mused.

  “Now, you won’t be going to the mountain right away. I’ll be dropping you off in the village at the base.” Dawn pointed out some barely visible huts and small buildings, plus a larger blocky one in the center. “You’ll spend the day there, then be taking the Five Trials tomorrow.”

  “That soon?” She didn’t feel ready.

  “Yup. I’m sure you’ll do the best you can, and that should be enough to make it.” Elizabeth couldn’t think of anything to say to that, so they finished the walk in silence, reaching the village base as the sun just started to peak over the top of the mountain.

  There was a monk standing guard at the open gates to the village, wearing a dark blue robe with green trim and carrying a slender staff in one hand, the other covered in a bulky metal gauntlet. He had mid-length brown hair and an eager smile on his face as he recognized who was approaching.

  “Master Florian, it’s good to see you again. And who might this be?”

  “Adept Terrance, this is Elizabeth Wry, a young girl with much potential. Please direct her to the waiting area with the others for the trials tomorrow.”

  “You’re entering her in tomorrow’s trials? Why not just wait a few-” At her raised eyebrow, he stopped questioning the more experienced monk and bowed his head. “As you say, Master. Come on,” he waved Elizabeth forward, but she turned to look at Dawn.

  “Sorry, but I think we need to part here. The life of a master is a full one, and I have much to do. Still, I’ll be able to instruct you more once you are initiated into the temple. Until then,” and with that, she moved. A single step was like a bounding leap, taking her straight up to one of the entrances on the gargantuan mountain itself.

  “Quite something, isn’t she? Though I guess you must be too, to grab her attention like that?”

  “She is, and I... hope to be, Adept Terrance.”

  “Ah, no need for that; you can just call me Terra, by the way. Adept Terra, if any Masters are about. Gotta look proper for my upcoming test. Sometimes I think they care more about appearances than how much we Adepts actually follow the guidelines of being a good Dream Warrior. Well, most of them.”

  He directed her into the village, where she saw several people milling about through daily chores, gathering water from a well, and carrying bundles of clothes. Terra called one of them over. “Could you cover guarding the gate for a minute? I need to guide this hopeful to the Waiting Room.”

  “Thanks, Sleeper.”

  The man he called over bows respectfully. “It is my honor, enlightened one.”

  “Sleeper? Hopeful?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Right, you wouldn’t be aware of the lingo. Sleeper is what we call these people living here, the ones who didn’t have the potential to become a Dream Warrior but still wish to help our cause out. They live down at the base of the mountain and support us up in the Temple.” He pointed up at the mountain, at the largest opening.

  Looking now in the light, she could see a number of caves and openings dotting the mountainside. There were a number of them, the large one a little up from the center, which Elizabeth made out the winding path leading up from the base of the mountain to it. From there it branched off to five fairly sizeable ones all around in a pentagon shape, pathways probably leading to them too. The others were far smaller and more scattered, some she likely couldn’t even make out from the black stone of the mountain. One she doesn’t see but suspects exists is a large hole cut out in the top, given how the peak looks like a rim.

  “It should be a Dream Warrior on guard of the gates, not a Sleeper, but I figure it’ll be best to leave someone there at least, not that there should be any problems. Who would attack Central?” True, it would be ridiculous for anyone to try and hurt the Dream Warriors. Not once in even the worst of the civil wars that happened centuries ago did anyone dare attack the main temples.

  He continued. “A Hopeful, i.e., you, is someone with the potential to become a Dream Warrior but hasn’t passed the Five Trials yet, so you’re ‘hopeful’ you’ll pass, haha. It must be a pretty sure thing in your case, though, if Master Florian brought you in.”

  “Is it rare for her to do that?”

  “Oh yeah, she hasn't brought anyone here before, too busy with her own work for the Grandmaster, being Tenga’s personal protege and all. What kind of stuff has she been teaching you?" The question was too casual for the intense gleam in his eyes.

  “The basics of Dream Warriors, our powers and stuff like that. Some other comments to really get me thinking in new ways sometimes.”

  “Huh, I’d have thought she’d give you a bit more than that if she’s throwing you straight into the trials. She must have confidence you’ll pass, though,” he quickly added. As they walked, he pointed out some of the supply places and other sites as they got closer to the big, blocky building where the other Hopefuls were. She saw a few Dream Warriors in different colored robes helping out the Sleepers, most blue like Terra’s, but some beige-brown in color.

  “I’m actually kinda glad for the excuse to head out for a bit,” Terra admitted. “Guarding the gate can be a really boring duty.”

  “Why’d you do it then?”

  “Master Poro asked for me to cover it - probably clears someone else off the schedule for prepping the Trials now that I think about it - and I don’t want to get on his bad side before my test.”

  “Are you taking the Trials too? But I thought-”

  “No, no, not that test. The Trials are just for those wanting to become Initiates. There are more individualized tests for Dream Warriors trying to become Adepts or Masters. I’m getting close, but my test won’t likely be for another few months at least.” He seemed surprisingly young to become a Master. Some years older than Elizabeth, but probably not more than ten years.

  At the big doors to the ‘Waiting Room’ (the name of the entire building with many rooms itself), Terra said, “Here’s your destination. Enjoy it for today, then you’ll be off to the mountain. And be sure to put in a good word for me with Dawn, would ya?” He didn’t wait for a reply before heading off back to the gate.

  Taking a deep breath, the young girl pushed open the double doors, stepping inside. It’s a very clean, bland building, mostly off-white colors. She found signs for ‘admissions’ fairly easily and walked down a hallway to the office, where a man in grey robes sat behind a small desk.

  “Hello? I’m Elizabeth Wry. I-”

  “Ah yes, the latecomer. I’ve heard about you, since for some reason you’ll be taking the trials with our current batch. Well, make yourself at home, for however long it lasts, I suppose.” The man’s dismissive tone grated on her, but she didn’t say anything. “You can drop your things off at the sleeping quarter in the northwest wing; the cafeteria is down the hallway, though we’ve finished serving breakfast; the library...” He rattled off some quick directions, then shooed her out of the office.

  After putting her bag away (putting on the locket her father gave her, since she didn’t think there were any rules against it), Elizabeth went to try and meet some of the other Hopefuls. Her first destination was the courtyard, in the center of the building, but with a roof carved out above so it was open to the air. It was easily the biggest ‘room’ in the building, and she found several other kids waiting there.

  All of the hopefuls appeared to be around her age, give a year or two. Three of them seemed to be exercising in the center, running around, stretching. Some others were talking or just lounging around. A pair of girls near the door called out to her.

  “Hey, who are you?” A girl about the same height said. She had short brown hair and wore a baggy shirt and pants with some smudges of dirt on them, likely hand-me-downs.

  “She’s probably just one of the next batch of Hopefuls, going to take their trials after us,” the shorter girl beside her said in a clear and precise voice that nonetheless sounded somewhat cold. She was wearing a pristine gown of black with white lace.

  “Uh, actually I’m going on the trials with you guys too,” she said, trying not to let any of the nervousness she was feeling show on her face. “I’m Elizabeth Wry, by the way. Who are you?”

  “Cool, I’m Juliet Rocksteader,” the other girl said, offering a hand to shake. “Are you feeling ready for it? I’m still agonizing over all the stuff they tried to teach us over the past two months here.”

  “Dalila Turry," the shorter girl curtly introduced herself. "I had thought it odd for you to come so late, as the rules state that as soon as a Hopeful reaches here, they must take the next trials as soon as they can. Juliet is right; it may be difficult for you to pass without the tutelage we received.” Yet she thought that Elizabeth would be in the next batch anyways? That’s... odd.

  “If you have any advice, I’m all ears. Master Florian has her belief in me, but I’m sure you’ve learned a lot here too.”

  Dalila perks up in recognition of the name. “Master Florain scouted you? You must be quite special then; she’s said to be the second greatest Dream Warrior in the world.” Elizabeth could believe it. Everyone knew of the legendary Grandmaster, but after him, the raw strength Dawn had demonstrated was undeniable. Dalila continued, “I’m not sure we could have much to offer you that a Master wouldn’t know better—only Adepts were brought in to teach the rest of us; we’ll only learn from Masters if we become Initiates, and only occasionally, I hear.”

  Juliet scoffed. “Pshaw. ‘If’? No, it’ll be when we become initiates.” She had a cocky grin on her face that Elizabeth thought was both a bit foolish, and she wished she could emulate.

  They talked for a bit, mostly about what the two girls had been taught here, then Elizabeth’s (far more sparse) experiences. “...So the old man went on and on about how ‘centering oneself is the true path to mastery’ as if he was ever going to reach that rank himself.”

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  Dalila had her own thoughts on their teacher. “Adept Quelth may never make it as a Master, but he does have a lot of experience, which is something we can use too. He and the other adepts guided us in meditation and learning to pull out our inner powers.”

  “I’m pretty good at using Fix, Fire, and Dream Walking, but I’m not sure about the others,” Elizabeth admitted.

  “They said we didn’t need to be able to draw upon all of the five powers, so you should be fine.”

  Juliet boasted “Not a problem for me though; I’ve already got a handle on all five, though I can’t match Dalila’s level of Force.”

  Elizabeth noted that it was interesting that powers weren’t needed, but it seemed to imply that they’re helpful in some way. After that the topic meandered a bit; she excused herself, heading over to the center where some of the other kids were working out.

  A boy in loose grey clothes that couldn’t quite hide how fit he was and a mop of dirty blonde hair was running a small circle that had been set up there and waved to Elizabeth as she approached. “Howdy! Are you looking to join us?”

  “Umm, sure.” Some of the others were doing sit-ups or push-ups or running like the boy, and there was a rope for climbing dangling down from the ceiling. She tried out the rope first, managing to get up to a good height before her arms shook a bit, and she fell down to the ground with a heavy thud.

  The boy from before ran over. “Whoa, are you alright?” She’d landed on her feet and bent at the knees a bit to absorb the shock.

  “Yeah, it didn’t hurt as much as I thought, actually.” Had she used Force to absorb the fall a bit? In any case, she ran some energy through to ‘Fix’ her body so that no damage was really done.

  “Ok, that’s good. I was worried for a moment; I suck at using Fix.”

  “Don’t you suck at all the five forms?” A dark-haired, tall boy doing sit-ups asked, pausing to look over at them. Elizabeth spotted something odd, a large round shield by his side, colored white and gold with five rounded crystals sticking out from the center.

  “Ugh, you don’t have to announce it or anything,” the blonde boy groused awkwardly.

  Elizabeth got up and asked him, “Is that why you’re working out so hard here?”

  “Well, sorta. I don’t find sitting down to meditate works so well, but I can clear my mind a bit and feel the liver energy within when I’m in motion, doing something.” The shield kid got up, picking up his shield and putting it on his back as a stocky girl in a purple dress walked up to them too.

  “That being said, having a good physical base will help with being a Dream Warrior just in general, and since Derrick’s having difficulties with some things - like remembering it’s called life energy - he’s practicing in others.”

  “That shows good dedication at least,” Elizabeth offered, and Derrick beamed at her.

  “I like you. We’re just about finished here anyways; want to come with us and get some lunch?” Elizabeth's stomach grumbled out an answer for her, and she blushed.

  The cafeteria was much like the rest of the Waiting Room; bland, but not bad. Same for the food, which was some bread and vegetables. It’s pretty noisy as all the other Hopefuls were eating at the same time, but Derrick got a table saved for them. She properly introduced herself, and the others did the same for her. The boy with the shield was Quentin March, and the girl was Tenga Loerun.

  “Tenga? As in...” Elizabeth trailed off, pointing up at the mountain, and the other girl groaned.

  “Yes. My parents decided to name me after him even though I’m a girl. It shouldn’t be too bad, though. A lot of people are named after him, what with the Grandmaster setting up the Order and all, so it’s not that rare a name even here.”

  “How did you get that shield, Quentin? I’ve never seen anything like it.” He blushed and seemed a bit nervous, but Derrick patted him on the back.

  “Hey, nothing to be embarrassed about, that shield’s probably gonna make you a shoe-in to pass the Trials. No one else here has unlocked their Individual Ability after all.” Whoa. Dawn had said unlocking such a thing would be noticeable, but Elizabeth didn’t realize how much.

  “It’s not that big a deal,” he tried saying, though a small grin was tugging at his lips from his friend’s encouragement.

  “C’mon, tell Liz the story of how you got it; it’s awesome.”

  “Just Ellie or Elizabeth, please. I am kinda curious, though.”

  “Well... my town’s a fairly safe place usually, but I took a different route going home from foraging one night and ran into a half dozen thugs. There weren’t any guards around for some reason, so they tried to attack me. I thought my life was over, but then I reached and out of nowhere pulled out this shield.” He tapped the large metal disc on his back. “It protected me somehow, even when I knew a couple of times their blades and clubs got past it. Honestly, I was so scared I can barely remember it all; it was a blur, but by the end of it, I beat up some of them, the others ran, and the story spread around town. Then an Adept came by and took me here.”

  After lunch, Elizabeth decided to check out the library and see what books were in there. The ‘library’ was small, to say the least. It was really just a lounge room with a couple of bookshelves on the sides, though the books do look interesting. Not all of them are books either; some were loose parchment and others scrolls. She grabbed one of the scrolls and went to sit down on one of the chairs before realizing at the last moment that it was occupied.

  “Oh! I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there, she said to the small, mousey boy sitting in it.

  “It’s fine; I get that a lot. Are those the Archidean scrolls you’re looking at?”

  “I guess? I just picked something at random; I’m not really sure how much studying I can get done before tomorrow, but I figured I should at least try to get some.”

  “It’s an interesting text; it gave me some good ideas on Folding” he said softly, still respecting the rules of the library even with his interest piqued.

  She pulled up a different chair nearby and began reading. The text was pretty flowery and archaic, but it did have some good insights into Folding, and how to use it best one had to focus their own perceptive skills to properly grasp the connections between spaces. It was apparently as vital as actually using the ability itself since once the space was compressed or expanded, anyone could traverse and use it just as well as the Dream Warrior themselves if they knew what to look for. The more suspicious parts of Elizabeth wondered if that was why Folding seemed to be the least accurately described ability used by Dream Warriors in the tale, often misrepresented in the tales as super speed or flat-out teleportation.

  Before she’s even realized it, it’s dark outside, the sun setting off in the distance. She feels like there’s still so much she could learn, but also that this must be a mere pittance compared to what they have in the mountain. All she can do now is have faith in her abilities and what she’s learned thus far. That, and get a good night’s sleep so she can be well rested.

  The sleeping quarters are a bit cramped. There’s a mix of beds and hammocks there, and since Elizabeth came in near the end, she got one of the hammocks crammed to the back. All told, there were about sixty kids in there, a few of them giving her odd looks, but otherwise everyone was busy with their own routines.

  Settling in, the candles got snuffed out, and Elizabeth went to sleep. Whatever she was expecting, though, it wasn’t the myriad swirling presences around her. The dream space feels thick in a way it never has before, just from the force of so many people attuned to that power around. Reaching out, she could also feel shades flickering about during the night. Is it people just trying to be unobtrusive or actively hiding their presence? She can’t tell.

  As the night drifted on, she felt something else. At first glance it seems like a weighted blanket, but then, as she tried to move past it, it became more constraining, trying to keep her from something, something she knows to be important, if she could just... just... WAKE UP!

  Gasping, she opens her eyes, and she awakes to see the boy from the library hovering over her with a worried, then turning to relieved, expression on his face. He and all the other Hopefuls are dressed, most turning to look at her with bleary eyes, but one boy, a beige-robed Initiate with slicked black hair, was gazing at her in shock before sneering and turning away.

  “Well, sleeping beauty woke up; how lovely. You and Mordrell there can hurry up and try to catch us before we make it to the temple entrance. If you’re late, you automatically fail the Trials. Everyone else, follow me.” The others all quickly follow after the rude boy, though Derrick stopped by them for a moment.

  “Sorry about that. We wanted to help you wake up, but Fergus Guiltjoy there said we weren’t allowed to for some reason. Mordrell was going to try to help you anyway, but then you woke up! Are you always such a heavy sleeper?” Before she could answer, he realized the others were almost all out the door. “Shoot! Better go join up with the others, get dressed, and catch up soon,” he said before running after the others.

  As she got changed quickly, Elizabeth noted she couldn’t find her locket, which she thought she had put in her bag before she went to bed. Not wanting to waste any more time looking for it, she finished getting dressed and ran out the door with Mordrell, trying to catch up to the others.

  It took a while for them to catch up, Initiate Guiltjoy obviously pushing the others at a quick pace, but the trail up was quite long, giving them time to catch up. When they do meet up, Elizabeth doesn’t need her abilities to sense that the Initiate is upset with the fact they made it... but she can tell that despite his glare, he doesn’t seem to care too deeply. He doesn’t like her, though, and she still doesn’t know why.

  After joining them, huffing and puffing, she takes a moment to ask Mordrell, “Hey, did that initiate mess with my stuff or take anything?”

  His brow furrows. “No, he kept his distance and told us to do the same too. Why?”

  “Ah, it’s nothing; I must have just forgotten where I put it. No one else took their bags, so I’m sure we can get our stuff after the Trials.”

  The hike up the mountain is tough, the black rocky path difficult to discern in the darkness, the sun barely risen and not nearly over the mountain yet. Many a Hopeful stumbled and fell rising up the path, including Elizabeth herself at one point. The fall scraped up her elbows a bit, which stung, but wasn’t enough to prompt her to try using Fix. Wasting life energy before the Five Trials even began felt foolish.

  There was a close call here and there, but no one fell off the steep path or collapsed, and after an hour of walking, they made it to the large central opening. Two monks, Adept level disciples waited there, the hopefuls taking a moment to catch their breath on the outcropping before going further.

  After a minute, Initiate Guiltjoy (who looked a bit winded himself) took them forward to the opening. As they got closer, they could see that the ‘opening’ was actually closed; a large set of doors, made of the same rocks as the mountain, was shut in front of them. The two adepts were both bald and looked almost identical; it was only when they spoke that Elizabeth realized they were a guy and a girl.

  “Welcome, Hopefuls. You’ve shown potential to come this far,” the man said.

  “But you’ll need more than that to pass these Trials and become a true Dream Warrior. Prove that you are a cut above the rest, that you can grow to be some of the most powerful men and women on the planet by besting these trials before you with your conviction and strength,” the woman continued.

  “Initiate, you have done your duty taking them here; please return to your studies,” the man said, and Fergus took a look back at Elizabeth before shrugging and walking up and away on a path to another entrance on their left.

  “These sacred trials are not a task to be taken lightly. If you take them and fail, you can never attempt to be a Dream Warrior again.” There were gulps of nervousness, something Elizabeth was feeling as well, but she did her best not to show it.

  “The two of us, along with some of the other Dream Warriors, will be evaluating your performance. We will decide if you pass your trials or not. That being said, there is a preliminary trial anyone can take that, if they pass, can immediately pass them on all the trials.” He had everyone’s full attention with that. Stepping aside, they pointed at the doors.

  “We will be opening these in a few minutes to lead you to your trials, but if any of you can open these doors without our assistance, you can pass immediately. Failing this test or not taking it doesn’t affect the Trials. It’s not expected you will pass it; only one person in the history of the Order ever has.” From the way their eyes darted to her for a moment, Elizabeth thought she had a pretty good idea who that person was.

  The doors are huge, 30 feet tall and each 20 feet wide, made of (probably thick) black stone. Moving such a massive object would be incredibly difficult, though perhaps with Force...

  Derrick is the first up, practically throwing himself at the doors with an eager rush, to no avail. He seemed like the physically strongest member of the class, and neither door budged an inch. A couple others try, including Dalila, but even with a minor shockwave created from her hands, the doors don’t move. A few stones were chipped off, but nothing to suggest serious damage.

  After they gave up, the Adepts stepped forward, one hand on each door, not providing any pressure but twitching slightly, and three seconds later, in complete harmony, the doors flew open with a ‘BANG,’ revealing the dark tunnel within.

  “Follow us,” they call out as they lead the way, the kids mostly falling into two lines behind them. As they marched forward, one of them would conjure a ball of fire in their hands every couple of seconds or so and toss it out to where they knew a torch to be, illuminating the dark passage. As she crossed the threshold, though, her mind was more on the door puzzle than on pyrotechnics.

  ... Nothing they did was enough. What’s the trick? Or is it that as Adepts they really were that much stronger than even the most gifted Hopeful?

  Looking back at it, she noticed that was merely the lesson they wanted to teach. There were tiny, almost imperceptible grooves in the ground, several of them spaced out along the entrance line, with other grooves that didn’t quite match them sweeping out. At the ends where the doors now rested open, she spotted spikes sticking down from the door into the groves. A test that would stop any Hopeful

  Almost any. Elizabeth beat herself up over it for a moment, how she could have guaranteed a pass by taking it before reminding herself she really couldn’t. The answer may have been easy, but only after she was on the other side and able to see it. Even then, it would take fairly precise Folding on something you couldn’t see to work the gate open - if Elizabeth had foreknowledge and was as good at Folding as she was at Fixing, she might have stood a chance.

  The tunnel winded and dropped down a bit before narrowing and reaching another set of doors, these ones far smaller and made of wood. The Adepts opened them easily to reveal a square-ish room carved out from the tunnel with three doors at the other end and many chairs waiting around. Another Adept with greying hair stood within, greeting them.

  “Welcome, young Hopefuls,” he began warmly. “My name is Adept Richardson. Welcome to the first Trial. Now, this trial needs to be taken individually, so we’ll have you wait here while we’re processing your fellows. It’s a long journey, so please, take this chance to relax while you can. Soon enough, we will be judging you.”

  Elizabeth gulped, moved to sit down in one of the chairs, and, as if sensing fear, he turned to her and said, “Mrs. Wry? Let’s have you go first.” It was time to begin the Five Trials and see if she was worthy of being a Dream Warrior.