Elizabeth walked up to the Adept as she was called. “Elizabeth Wry?” She nodded. “Perfect. You’ll be taking the door on the left. Head down the hallway and then take the… hmm... the third door, yes. Take the third door on the left; your trial will begin in there.” Why the hesitation? Was he unsure of which way to send her? But he felt perfectly sure.
She didn’t have the time to question him on that as others were being called up, so she left and went through the door as directed. The hallways here were already lit with torches, thankfully, so it was fairly easy to navigate them.
She passed by the doors until coming to the third one, all of them undecorated and bland, making her wonder if she really came to the right place. Knocking, she waited for an answer, but no one said anything. She opened the door to find out if anyone was in there, and while the door opened, no one was inside.
Instead, there are a bunch of half-made projects and blueprints on a table, one of them a wooden puzzle labeled ‘Puzzle for first Trial.’. Her eyes widened at the sight, and then she heard her name called by the woman who had led them there. “Mrs. Wry?” Exiting the room, she sees the woman walking up to her.
“There you are. Adept Richardson gave you the wrong directions; it’s at the end of the hallway.” She didn’t seem to know or be worried about what Elizabeth knows, and she really wants to pass, but passing like that...
“Well? What are you waiting for? Hurry up and go, she said.
The words spill out of her mouth. “I’m really sorry, I didn’t mean to, but the directions the Adept gave me were wrong, so I went to that room, and I saw the answers for the First Trial! Please don’t fail me for that.”
“Hopeful Wry...” she says solemnly before breaking out into a grin. “You pass the first Trial.”
“What.”
“You passed. By confessing, you’ve shown your honesty and commitment to our ways. That alone may not be enough to be a true Dream Warrior, but it’s enough to set the foundation, which is what this first trial tests for. Now c’mon, let’s go together, and I can tell Adept Pargreth that you’ve passed.”
They walked down to the end of the hallway, and when she entered the room, there was a heavyset adept sitting at a table with a wooden puzzle like the one she had seen blueprints of, as well as an hourglass. “Welcome to the-” she began before catching sight of the other Adept. “I take it she passed then?”
“With flying colors. Master Florian must have taught her well.” But... she didn’t teach her that. Did she? No, even with the most cryptic lines, Elizabeth really didn’t see how Dawn could have taught her that.
“Well, you can go on to the next trial past me then. Or, you can in a few minutes. They didn’t expect anyone to pass this fast, so we’ll need to wait a few minutes.” The other adept excused herself to go guide the others while Elizabeth waited with Pargreth for the next Trial to be ready.
She didn’t talk a lot, practically seemed to be nodding off, so Elizabeth used the time to study the puzzle laid out before her on the table. She didn’t need to solve it, but it was still interesting. A little tricky, but not too hard to solve, and with the help from the blueprint she accidentally saw... she would have failed. Viewing the puzzle calmly, it was obvious that this puzzle ever so slightly differed from the one in the blueprint, and if she tried to move the pieces in it like the instructions showed, it would actually break off part of the puzzle when she applied force on it, making it unsolvable.
It was a trap to see if the Hopeful would use the knowledge they shouldn’t have gained to try and cheat! The whole thing was a setup. Of course, even if they did, if they kept a cool enough head, a hopeful might see the trap coming and avoid it, or possibly just ‘Fix’ it after the fact and keep on solving the puzzle (though Elizabeth wasn’t sure if that was allowed or not).
A sort of psychic ‘dinging’ went off very gently in the back of Elizabeth's mind, and the Adept snapped her eyes open, mysteriously saying, “Your next trial awaits.” It might have been a bit more effective if she hadn’t had an air of pride at having to be half asleep to receive a message Elizabeth heard loud and clear while awake.
She didn’t comment on it, though, and simply moved to the door. Before she could leave, Adept Pargreth said, “Wait. I won’t be going with you, but I will give you the test details. You simply need to cross to the door on the other end of the next room within a minute of entering that room. Also, I’ll need to take your shoes for this trial.” Odd, but she didn’t see a reason or way to resist, so she slipped off her footwear and handed them to the Adept.
That done, she turned and stepped through the door, immediately awash with a wave of heat. The floor past a few square feet of tile she was standing on was covered in burning coals, save for thin ridges on the edges by the walls. It extended at least 40 feet out to where there was a similar platform at the other end, the exit door waiting there. In the middle of the room was a wooden podium, flames already licking away at it.
Before she had the time to take anything more, the door behind Elizabeth was slammed shut, obviously indicating the test had begun. Only a minute to cross... it seemed like a test to see if one would prioritize speed over safety, running across the hot coals or taking the side edge. Even without running, it didn’t seem too hard to rush on the side and make it to the end in a minute- she paused. A flash of light from the podium caught her eye, and she saw her locket, the one she thought she had ‘misplaced’ earlier, dangling off the edge of it.
Her thoughts came to a grinding halt as she realized how insidious the test was. There was no way someone could reach the center while keeping their feet on the edge. But if she burnt her feet grabbing at her locket, could she possibly make it to the end in time?
Desperation broke free from her thoughts, and she knew she couldn’t wait and debate any longer, or she’d lose everything. Jumping to the edge, she immediately side-shuffled as fast as she could till getting to the midway point, where the podium sat.
As quickly as she could, she ran out to it, not willing to lose the locket her father had so lovingly crafted for her. The coals seared her feet, an incredible pain coursing through her. It would be worse than most Hopefuls had felt; even for her, it was as bad as it had ever gotten in her father’s forge when she had made mistakes, but that bit of experience was enough to help push her through and run through the flaming coals and yank off her necklace.
With time running short, Elizabeth didn’t bother to try and get back to the ledge, instead just running across the rest of the coals and leaping to the other end, throwing the door open and flinging herself into the next room.
It was a decently large room, about as large and blocky as the one where all the kids were waiting to take the first trial. No chairs this time, just open space, some racks with weights hanging from them, and a stern older man in Adept’s robes glaring down at her. “Hmph. I see you’ve put yourself through unnecessary pain.”
“But- I passed, right?” There was no way a full minute had passed, had there? She wondered.
“Yes, though your injuries may cause you complications in the later trials. You’re the first one to make it here, so we’ll be waiting on your fellows to arrive before we begin the Third Trial.”
He didn’t seem too happy with her, though it was hard to tell behind his bushy beard. Elizabeth sat down and started focusing on Fixing her feet. No amount of energy would help her if she couldn’t walk any more, and she hoped to gain any stamina needed by the time the trial began.
Over the next twenty minutes, more Hopefuls streamed in till there were at least 18 of them all told, though only a couple seemed as badly burned as she had been when she entered, though none of them tried Fixing their wounds. Or at least, none healed them fast enough to be noticeable, whereas hers were almost completely gone, the soles of her feet barely tinged pink by the time the Adept called them all to attention.
“Line up!” He called out and scrambled to do so (then reorganized themselves to be lined up horizontally in front of him instead of vertically), Elizabeth’s feet only stung slightly by the time she got in line. “I am Adept Wengar, and this will be a test of your endurance.” Pulling large, heavy disks off from the racks, he placed them in front of each person.
As he did that Elizabeth asked “Are we the only ones who made it or are there separate tests?” Less than a third of the people who had entered the mountain were in the room for this Trial, leaving her wondering if the other trials had really eliminated so many other people or if the groups were split up. She recognized Derrick and Tenga, but no one else in the group. Unfortunately, Wengar didn’t seem as appreciative of her questions as Dawn had been, and he ignored her.
“When I tell you to, you will begin holding them, one in each arm, and you will continue holding them until I tell you to stop.” He demonstrated by easily hefting two of them up in the air, his arms not even straining. “Understand?”
Everyone nodded or said yes. “Good, let’s begin!” Then they all scrambled down to grab and lift up the heavy weights. They weren’t impossible to carry, but definitely quite heavy, and Elizabeth was beginning to feel the strain pretty soon into it. She was strong enough, though, and determined to see this trial through, so she kept on holding them up.
Eventually, an Initiate burst through the end door and said, “I’m sorry, Adept Wengar, but the others need your help for a quick judgment on one of the Hopefuls.”
“Fine. For the rest of you, keep on holding on to those while I’m out; I’ll be back in a minute,” he barked out before heading off with the Initiate. After a few seconds of their departure, an unfamiliar, shorter Hopeful let his weights fall down to the ground with a heavy ‘thud.’.
Everyone looked at him in shock, and he sneered, “What? He’s not here; I’m just gonna take a break for a bit, then pick them up before he gets back; it’s fine. Means I’ll be one of the ones who actually gets to pass this thing.”
Many of the others were looking very tired and starting to be swayed by his words before Elizabeth spoke up. “This doesn’t seem right. I had the opportunity to cheat on the first trial, but when I told the truth, that was the right answer and the thing that let me pass. I don’t think we should try to cheat here.” There was also the fact that the Adepts might be watching the group anyways, sneakily with their powers.
Derrick chimes in as well, one of the few people who isn’t looking tired. “Yeah, I had the same thing happen to me too. I was so worried about passing I almost used it, but then I remembered Quelth’s teachings to us and how we had to be honest.” The others nod along, having experienced similar things.
“Let’s keep on doing our best, everyone. Even if they wouldn’t know (and I actually doubt they wouldn’t), I want to pass the right way.” The group seemed emboldened and pushed on, though the Hopeful that dropped his weights didn’t pick them up. Interestingly, he also felt surprised and pleased, from what Elizabeth could feel off him.
“You’re correct about that.” Adept Wengar’s voice boomed out from the doorway as he returned. “You did good not to drop them like that chump.” At his return, others were smiling and beginning to relax and moving to drop the weights down, but Elizabeth realized it wasn’t over.
“Wait! He hasn’t said for us to put them down yet!” Those who were putting them down scramble to keep a grip, some managing better than others, but all of them stopping before they would hit the ground.
“Surprising, I wouldn’t expect you to be the one to follow orders. Good that one of you does at least.” He said, looking Elizabeth dead in the eyes. No one moved to drop them this time, waiting for him to finally say it, but he didn’t. All of the Hopefuls strained to hold on as time passed, sweat dripping off their frames. The one who failed, lounging on the ground, took that as an opportunity to grouse, however.
“Can’t you see it’s pointless? He’s just going to wait until a couple more of you fail; the third Trial is always the one to cull the most Hopefuls.” Doubt begins to creep into their eyes again, but Elizabeth has caught on to his word choice.
“How would you- ha, ha?” Elizabeth gasped for air as she struggled to hold the weights up. “Know anything about that? Haa, people can only take the Trials once, isn’t that right, Initiate?” The others feel shocked but don’t show it, too focused on keeping up their grips. “Whatever tricks you’re trying to play on us, we aren’t falling for them!” She declares, and Wengar is shocked, then... he claps his hands together.
“Well done. I think this charade can’t go any further, Initiate Deng." Then to the group of Hopefuls he announced, "You may now drop the weights!” A cacophony of crashes erupts as the tired Hopefuls all drop the disks at once. Even Derrick drops his and takes the moment to stretch his arms out.
“We did it, guys, we passed the third trial!” He screamed elatedly, met by some more muted and tired ‘hoorays’ by the others.
“I said you were done with the carrying portion of the trial, not that you had passed yet,” Adept Wengar declared, much to everyone’s horror. Then, a twinkle passed by his eyes, and he followed up with, “You have now passed the third trial.” There was much groaning, from equal parts the joke and their tiredness.
“You lot can move on to the next Trial. Beyond me is a room with some refreshments, but you’ll only have ten minutes to rest before being called up for the next Trial.” It sounded like that one would be a group trial too. “And good luck, young Hopefuls. May you shine as brightly in your following Trials as you did here.” Wow, it was actually kind of nice to hear that encouragement, Elizabeth reflected.
He began cleaning up the place, picking up whole stacks of the weights to carry them over; the youngish-looking man revealed to be an Initiate helping him out, but also stopped by to ask Elizabeth a question. “How did you see through me?”
“Some of it was how you spoke and acted, like you weren’t a part of ‘us.’. The other was just... what I felt off of you.”
He shook his head. “Wow, I didn’t expect anyone would have a Dream Sense that developed without even our ro- any training we’ve gone through.”
The Adept cut in. “I had mixed feelings too after seeing the results of the Second Trial, but given how well she stood and spoke up here, I think she might do well. It’s obvious that Master Florian has taught her well.” Just like that any joy she was feeling at his praise is cut off. Him talking to the Initiate and not her wasn’t great, but part of Elizabeth was also growing a bit upset that everyone seemed to attribute her successes to Dawn all the time. The best of them simply praised Dawn for ‘picking talent,’ but few people actually seemed to think she was great on her own.
Striving to push that out of her mind, she left the room and joined the others. The next room was pretty similar to the one they had just been in but filled with tables, benches, and some snacks. After getting many cups of delicious, refreshing water, Elizabeth started in on some of the bland but nutritious food they had.
Taking a look around, she saw the others in high spirits from their win in the trial, a few even coming up to thank her for her advice. It was then she spotted Dalila hanging out by herself on the outskirts. She hadn’t noticed the girl at first with her very plain pants and shirt rather than the fancy noble dress (also, the pain and Trial distracted Elizabeth a fair bit).
She goes up to the other girl and sits down beside her. “Hey.”
Dalila seems a bit wary at first, before relaxing. “Hello, Elizabeth. Good job on the trial.”
“Ah, stop. I just did what anyone else would have done.” The other girl shook her head.
“But none of us did.” There was silence for a bit as they both ate, but eventually Dalila asked her, “What made you decide to become a Dream Warrior?”
“Well, that hasn’t been decided yet. But uh, why do I want to be a Dream Warrior? Well, it’s to help people. I saw a lot of people get hurt by a Nightmare in my hometown before Dawn saved them; that’s when I knew I had to use my powers to help people out too. What about you?”
“I see. I... felt much the same, I suppose. That because I had these abilities, it was my duty to use them. My family wanted me to continue being a noble. As the only heir of my parents, I’d- I’ will have to give such claims up when I become a Dream Warrior. I found much of the noble culture to be distasteful, but some aspects of it, I worry I clung on to a bit as I still wore their fancy garments for the months leading up to this Trial. I can’t afford such hesitation now; I must be fully set on the path ahead, with no room for doubts.”
Elizabeth nodded. “I’m sure you’ll do great. Don’t beat yourself up too much for having doubts; I had my fair share- still do sometimes. The important thing is to keep on moving ahead.”
“Indeed,” and she gave a small but genuine smile at that.
There wasn’t much time for more talking, their break soon ending as the man who guided them through the first door called them to follow him.
Down deeper into the mountain they went and Elizabeth wondered at the size of it all, for so much to seemingly be dedicated just for the Five Trials, how much else was there for the rest of Dream Warrior activities? She also noted that the Adept leading them was lighting fewer torches as they went down the winding paths.
Some of the slopes were steep enough down that it would have been difficult to go up them, but everyone managed to make it down without falling or stumbling into each other too much, and then they found themselves in a slightly broader hallway. There’s an opening in the front and two sets of steps leading down on either side, as well as paths sticking out directly at the far ends of each side. The only feature of note was a lever nearby the opening.
They stepped to the opening and saw a large, cavernous, open space below them. Only the bright light coming from a circular platform in the center made it possible for Elizabeth to dimly make out the other end of the chamber before them. All along the ground were odd grooves cutting across it. The most disturbing part was the sounds, though, some growling and hissing animal noises down below, though the lack of light made it harder to see it as anything other than a few shifting shadows.
Three more Adepts came out from the left and right side passages as the bald monk began explaining. “It looks like everyone is here, so let us begin. You will be taken to one of four entrances (including this one) around the testing area. From there, each of you will be set down on one of these stairs and have to make it to the center within twenty minutes. If you do, you pass; if you don’t, you fail.” While she was sure it wasn’t going to be as easy as he made it out to be, this one didn’t feel like a ‘trick’ test like the others did. Just a race to the end.
“Since all of you passed the last Trial, we’ll be sending you down the stairs in groups of two, though you don’t have to stick together once you enter.” The other Adepts led most of the group off to go around the large area, leaving Elizabeth on the right side to go down those stairs with Dalila. It took a while for the others to get in place, but it also went faster than Elizabeth would have thought it would take them to go all the way around (before she remembered that Folding was a power they could use), and some brief flares lit up from other openings, and the Adept that led them returned with a flare of his own.
“Everyone is ready then, let’s begin,” and he pulled the lever, causing a massive rumble to fill the air as large walls started rising up into place, locking into place and forming a vast labyrinth in the once empty space. He told them, “Go down the stairs; the Trial begins soon,” and the four hopefuls on that side scrambled into place, an iron gate barring their path at the bottom.
“4, 3, 2, 1... begin!” The gate lifted up, and they were off! Elizabeth and Dalila raced down between the imposing onyx walls on either side until coming to a fork in the road.
“Which way do you want to go? I’ll go down the other,” Dalila offered, and Elizabeth debated it before coming up with a third choice.
“Why don’t we just go together? Safety in numbers and all that.”
“But the Adept said-”
“He said we don’t have to stick together, not that we couldn’t.” The noble girl thought it over for a moment before nodding.
“Alright, let’s go down the left path.” They turned that way, and it was quite dark, something Elizabeth answered by conjuring a ball of fire above her hand and holding it up.
“That’s impressive,” the other girl began.
“Thank you!”
“Also, incredibly wasteful,” and Elizabeth’s grin dropped. “It’ll take a lot of energy to hold that up all the way through this maze.” She used the light to locate a torch hanging off one of the walls and yanked it off with a loud crack, then alighted it from the fire Elizabeth made. “There, that should help us.”
Stolen novel; please report.
“Good idea, let’s go!” The two trek down the labyrinth at a good pace since they’re able to see everything, but there are still a couple of dead ends they run into and backtracking needed. Neither of them got a good look at the place in the brief time after the Adept pulled the lever, so they got a little lost. Nothing bad enough to get turned around, and after some time, a sound gets closer. Of course, it’s a sound of rattling chains and clacking hooves on the stone floor.
“Should we go back? Try to find a different route?” Elizabeth asked.
The white-haired girl shook her head. “No. There may be another route forward, but if there’s an obstacle in our path, it probably means we’re going the right way. ‘The Dream Warrior must be prepared to face adversity head on,’” she quoted.
They pressed on, but after another minute, the noise stopped. Was it just nearby another wall they passed? No, there are no intersections that would keep the noise up like that and then let it drop, which meant-
Danger!
Elizabeth threw herself to the side as she crossed another corner, barely escaping snapping teeth from a creature lunging at her.
The torch fell from her hands in the process but didn’t go out, revealing the beast, about three feet tall and four long (not including its wiry tail). It was a red, scaly, slathering creature, snapping at Elizabeth from both sets of its jaws as it strained against the metal collar chaining it to the top of the wall to get at her, but was just out of reach. Snarling, it raised two of its four hooved legs to trample her. Elizabeth quickly pulled her own back, shuffling herself into the corner.
Dalila rushed to her side, smacking the creature with her hand, yelling out in shock and panic. The blow is a clumsy slap, but with Force behind it, it smacks the creature’s head back a bit, giving Elizabeth the space she needed to get up.
“What is that thing?”
“It’s a Crotar! I can’t believe they sent something that dangerous to test us.” Her composure and surety from before has fallen, and Elizabeth recognized that beneath that cool, stoic exterior she projected, Dalila was a teenage girl, just as scared as her. “They have venom in their teeth that can kill a man slowly over the course of a few days.”
... Maybe she has a good reason to be afraid. Nonetheless, they had to press on, and the Crotar was starting to close in on them again. There was no way around it without backtracking a lot. She looked down at the torch and saw the creature hesitate a bit as it approached it. Was it afraid of fire? One way to find out.
Making another burst of fire, she sent it flying at the creature, singeing it and sending it hissing back. It didn’t seem overly hurt by the burst, but it was scared. Keeping up a stream of flame, she advanced slowly, cutting off and forcing the Crotar to one side as they nervously passed. She thought it would try to jump them at one point, but she glared at it, turned up the heat, and it thought better of that plan. They made it across the pathway, racing away as soon as they were out of its reach.
“We did it! That was crazy! And dangerous! And a little exhilarating!” Dalila exclaims, looking a bit shocked and ruffled by the whole ordeal, but also overjoyed at being alive. “It’s a good thing it was so hesitant towards fire, or we might have been in serious trouble there.”
“Haha, yeah, but it worked, right? Plus, we had your Force and my Fire and could have Fixed any damages it caused.”
“No, Crotar venom is actually incredibly resistant to Fix; only the strongest of Dream Warriors can undo its effects.”
“What!? They keep something like that here? And you let me go through with that plan?” She said, grabbing and shaking the smaller girl as she realized the danger she just put them in.
“Ahh, you- moved too fast!” Dalila managed to get out. A quick glare from her reminded Elizabeth that she probably shouldn’t treat her (partner? Friend?) that way and put her down.
“Whoops, sorry about that.”
“Well, it’s understandable; I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed too. Still, we’re on the clock, so we better hurry.”
“Right.” Going through the labyrinth more, they encountered a few more obstacles. It was darker without the dropped torch, and there didn’t seem to be any more on those walls. There weren’t any more animals, but a pit trap nearly caught them, Elizabeth having to throw herself to the ledge to avoid falling while Dalila jumped forward a bit more gracefully, then pulled Elizabeth up.
But as they descend further into darkness, a light appears too, a faint whitish-blue glow from further through the tunnels. “That must be the platform!” Elizabeth said before racing forward. The goal was in sight, so she didn’t bother trying to conserve more energy and just made a floating sphere of fire to further illuminate the passage so they wouldn’t run into any last-minute traps.
After jumping over a tripwire, they turned another corner and made it to the center. The platform seemed to be radiating the light just from itself, no other source needed. There were a few symbols in an alphabet Elizabeth couldn’t read scribbled on the sides of it. Three other entrances led into the center from other parts of the labyrinth, but no one was coming forth at the moment.
They hesitated a second, then stepped onto the platform, and it made a ‘click’ sound before starting to descend slowly into the ground. They stumbled around a moment but decided to stay on, figuring that it was part of the Trial and they shouldn’t try to get off. Once they had gone down eight feet, a covering slid over above them, leaving them just with the dim light of the strange platform itself.
The last Trial had been draining, from power use and running around, but Elizabeth still felt she had a bit of stamina left. She could only hope it would be enough for the final Trial. Dalila seemed pretty puffed from the last bit of running they had done too.
At fifteen feet down, the platform stopped, an opening revealed as they descended for a small, very old, and far more natural and unpolished tunnel. They went down to a wooden door and a hooded Adept standing in front of it.
“Congratulations, young hopefuls. You have passed the fourth Trial. The final trial is taking place past me, in the room beyond. While you might have worked together for the past trial, the final one must be taken alone. I’ll let you know when the room is clear for one of you to proceed, while the other waits,” he intoned.
Elizabeth turned to Dalila. “Do you have a preference?”
“I guess I’ll go first then. I don’t think it makes much of a difference if we don’t know what lies beyond.”
They didn’t have much more to say after that, just waiting in silence and catching their breath until a minute or two passed, and the Adept called out, “Who will be going first?”
Dalila stepped forward and went into the room, which was too dark for Elizabeth to peek in and see what was coming.
“Good luck!” Elizabeth called out before the door closed. Then, the sounds of running came by as Tenga rushed down the tunnel to them.
“Did I make it?”
“You did,” the Adept said, glancing at the hourglass standing beside him as he did so. There was less than a fifth of the sand at the top of it now, draining down.
“Good job!” Elizabeth gave the other girl a high five. “Dalila passed too, but I don’t know who else has made it down yet.” They looked towards the Adept at the doorway, but he didn’t give them any information. “We have to go through the next Trial one at a time. I’m not sure what goes on there.”
“And Mrs. Tuly’s trial has just finished; you may proceed, Mrs. Wry.”
No clue on if she had passed or not, not that it would make a difference. “Ok, let’s do this.” Stepping forward, she went through the door into a dark room. Within she couldn’t make out any doors, though she heard some people breathing and robes shuffling behind an elevated barrier, looking down on her. One of them began speaking as she entered the center of the room.
“Elizabeth Wry, in this fifth and final trial to become a Dream Warrior, you... PASS!”
What.
What?
WHAT!?
Flickers of flame leapt forward and ignited some torches, illuminating the room. There were three Adepts there, Wengar and the woman from the beginning and Terra, as well as the door she came in and another one to leave from. Terra was the one to address her shock. “Whaaaat?” He said in an exaggerated voice, chuckling a bit. “Ah, don’t look so surprised; you did good, of course you passed.”
“Terra? I mean, Adept Terra, what’s going on? Aren’t I supposed to have a Trial here? One final test? I didn’t realize you’d even be here.”
“Well, one of the other testers got a bit too deep in his cu-” It was a quick motion, but there was a small ‘thud’ as the woman beside him cut him off by elbowing him in the side. He smoothly changed his words, not dropping his smile. “An Adept was unfortunately out of commission for examining you hopefuls, so I volunteered to take his place.”
“Ahem.” Wengar cleared his throat. “As to your questions, young Initiate, this Trial does not test your skills; it tests your compassion, something you’ve already demonstrated quite clearly throughout the other Trials.” She understood, theoretically, but it felt so... anticlimactic. There was hardly a point arguing against it, though.
“We’d usually interrogate you a bit, ask you some questions to see if you had the right stuff, but you already had everything you needed. Just consider this us saving everyone a bit of time.” She bowed to Terra, then the other two Adepts, and walked out, still unable to believe it somewhat. She had passed the Five Trials; she was a Dram Warrior.
Walking out the other side, she saw many of her fellow Hopefu- fellow Initiates now, gathered in a long, empty room. Only about a third of the group that had started the Trials had passed. At the end of the room were a set of very fancy engraved stone doors. Derrick was the first to run over and greet her, the boy giving her a bear hug. “You made it! Good job, I had a good feeling about you, even if you came in way late.”
“Of course she did; she was picked out by Master Florian herself.” Dalila said, walking forward to greet Elizabeth as well, and the girl frowned internally at the comparison, but tried not to show it, knowing that she meant well (though that had been one of the reasons why she hadn’t told Derrick and his friends about that, wanting them to just view her on her own merits).
“Oh, cool. Hey, do you know if Tenga and Quentin made it too?” The energetic boy asked. “I didn’t see them in the maze, so...”
“Tenga was right behind me after Dalila went through the fifth Trial. Didn’t see Quentin, though. Not sure how long it will take for her to finish that Trial” or what would happen if she failed it. They didn’t have to find out, though, as a minute later she burst out of the door, cheering.
“I did it! I can’t believe it, I did it, I’m gonna actually be like... him, my namesake.” She was just as amazed and overjoyed as everyone else, happily talking as they waited for more people to arrive. In the end it took more than even the 20 minutes they had had to clear the maze, but Elizabeth guessed that was just due to the bottleneck created by the Fifth Trial, as the others must have finished the Labyrinth close to the end. Over twenty people had gathered there (including Mordred, already there, and Juliet and Quentin, the shield-wielding boy arriving last) by the time the far end doors, which had been barred shut, opened.
It opened to reveal a black-robed Master Dream Warrior, beckoning them through. He was an aged man, in his sixties or so, his gray hair beginning to recede, but he led them quite spryly. Following, they entered into a ridiculously large chamber. It was wide and bumpy, the earth feeling far softer on her feet than the cool stone of everywhere else had been. Taking it in, she could tell that the chamber was circular, possibly even a perfect circle, though hers (and everyone else’s) attention was sucked in by the plant growing in the center.
‘Plant’ may not have done the tree justice. She didn’t know how far down within the mountain they were, but it was thousands of feet at least; the tree extended up, possibly to the very peak of Mount Dawnbreaker itself. There were knots and carvings here and there running up the bark, any cut looking very deliberate. A few streams of light trickled in from the vast verdant canopy at the top, the leaves far sparser on the lower branches, which ranged from tiny twig-sized to as large as the trunks on most normal trees. There were hundreds of holes and tunnel openings from elsewhere in the mountain poking out to this tree, some of the thicker branches coming out close to the exit and looking like they might be used as bridges. The lower branches from the top showed more variance in color of the leaves, from green to bronze, all sharp and angular, like a rippling sea of fangs in the gentle breeze that drifted down. The mythic tree was of an entirely unique type, or at least one Elizabeth had never heard of before.
They all walked in, in a bit of a daze, to the base of the tree, the Master standing above them on where a root protruded out from the ground. “Well done, young Dream Warriors. Today, you stand before the Tree of Life and take the first and greatest step in your new lives. This will not be an easy path at times; much is demanded of us Dream Warriors: to keep the peace, to protect the innocents, to guide the masses.” He let the words sink in for a moment.
“You’ve hoped for this greatness long and hard, and now through your struggles, you begin to make this dream a reality. The Five Trials, as designed by our great Grandmaster Tenga when he founded the Order, have tested the skills necessary to be a Dream Warrior, coinciding with the Five Abilities we have been gifted with.” His eyes locked onto each of them slowly in turn as he talked.
“The Decisive Puzzle tested how well you could see what lay underneath the surface and the ability to put pieces of a larger picture together, something vital for interpreting the dreams experienced through Dream Walking.”
“The Carpet of Coals showed how dangerous passions can be, even to ourselves when held too close, and yet are something we need to survive. The same basis as our Fire. By keeping a distance and remaining unburnt, you showed the prudence needed to control our most dangerous ability.”
“The Weight of Duty tested your ability to follow the orders of your superiors at the temple while pushing your determination to its limits. Force needs a steadfast mind to push against the pressures of the world, and your will shone through.”
“The Mysterious Maze can only be unraveled by keen eyes to see the patterns and pathways made. This is requisite in using the complex art of Folding, and for perceiving problems as they arise. If you cannot see the trouble lurking in the Queendom, throughout all of Engalia, then how can you solve it? Your passage proves you have the capability to find, and thus resolve, these issues for the Order.”
“Finally, Caring for the Garden. A metaphor to represent how you care for and look after your fellows and the world. This compassion is needed to tend to and spread the seeds of our ideals to all of Engalia, and for your ability to Fix. Healing first comes from compassion; one cannot Fix without that true desire.”
At the smiles on all of their faces, the Master smiled too. “Now, these steps are only the first, as I said; there will be many more you need to take, but for today, rejoice in your victory. On the grounds of your efforts today, I, Master Poro, induct you into our Order and pronounce you Dream Warriors!” They cheered at his words, shouting and crying tears of jubilation, barely noticing the Adepts who had tested them coming up with beige robes folded in their hands.
They called the Initiates forth and gave them their robes, then directed them through a tunnel leading out to their rooms. As they left, Master Poro said, “Make sure to get dressed quickly, then come down to the Dining Hall. We’ll be holding a feast in celebration of your achievement.” That got some more cheers as they raced ahead (though never managing to outpace the Adepts leading them and get lost in the winding tunnels, likely due to Folding), eager for the celebration and food.
The pathways were confusing, going up and down and sliding their way through the mountain’s many paths. They intersected seemingly at random, and there was little by way of signage. The walls shifted color slightly as they went up and down in terms of elevation, going from a near magenta shade to blue, then brown, then black. The Adepts led them unerringly to a far larger tunnel with many doors lining the walls. Wengar said, “You’ll be staying here, in the fourth Initiate quarters, for the time being. Pick out any room each of you wants from the right side- my right, he added as one Dream Warrior took two steps in the wrong direction. “After you’re done getting dressed, I’ll lead you all to the Dining hall.”
Elizabeth picked a middle room at random and opened it to find a small, oval-ish room. There was a bed, a chest, a meditation mat near the center of the room, and that was about it, save for the window somehow sticking out of it. Had the tunnels taken them that close to the surface of the mountain? No, it didn’t seem like that. She opened the window and felt the breeze blowing through and realized that, despite being done very smoothly, it wasn’t a giant opening, probably more like a pin-sized hole through to the surface of the mountain, Folded to give a view and feel of a window, looking out at the crimson sun setting in the sky.
A voice called out for everyone, and Elizabeth quickly hurried to get dressed and join the others. She tried to keep track of the path they took over to the dining hall, but she only remembered about half of the twists and turns to reach there.
The doors to the dining hall were tall, though not nearly as great as those of the main mountain entrance, only about 12 feet high. They opened to reveal the large chamber that made up the dining hall, several long wooden tables and benches placed in lines inside it, one slightly fancier one at the end of the room.
It was easily the largest room they had been in within the place, save for the one with the great tree, if it could be called a ‘room,’ and about the same size as all of their resting quarters section as well. Sleepers walked about this way and that setting up platters as Dream Warriors of all levels, which had been sitting down, rose up to greet them.
Master Poro and a couple dozen other Masters stood at the far end table, the only table to have the black and red-robed monks. Master Poro stood up from the center- no, not quite the center. There was an empty seat to his right that would have been the center that conspicuously no one sat in. It wasn’t a different seat than anyone else’s, but Elizabeth knew that it must be Grandmaster Tenga’s spot. He wasn’t the only one missing, though. It stung to realize that Dawn wasn’t there.
“We welcome our newest Initiates to the Order. Congratulations again! Now, please, join us and enjoy this wonderful feast in our honor and the honor of all Dream Warriors taking their first steps in our Order.” There was an empty table for them to sit down in and then a toast to them, after which much cheering and feasting on the vast amount of delicious food placed before them.
It had been a long day, and she was tired, which was why Elizabeth’s cheers were more muted, at least, that’s what she had told herself. It was getting harder for her to ignore the fact that there were other things digging at her mind, which left her feeling less than satisfied (not the least of which was a particular empty seat at the Master’s table up top). None of her peers noticed amidst the other noise, though, as she made half-hearted attempts to keep up.
She consoled herself with how delicious the food was at least, and plentiful. They really had set up a feast for them.
Many Adept and older Initiates would walk by and congratulate them, pat them on the back as they passed, and the like. Most of the Initiates were caught up in conversation after the meal, mostly speculation about what everything was going to be like now that they were here. Elizabeth took the moment to leave, though that caught Derrick’s attention.
“Oh, where are you going, Elizabeth? You’ve been kinda quiet.” So he did pick up on it; he might be better at it than he thought in that case or was just naturally observant. She still did her best to brush it off, though, not feeling comfortable enough to share her real feelings.
“Just tired is all. Figured I should get a good night’s rest for whatever training we have tomorrow.”
Dalila nodded at that. “Very prudent. We haven’t been told yet what our classes will be like or when, so it’s best to get a good night’s sleep to be ready for them whenever.” She got up as well, keen to follow Elizabeth’s example and what she saw as a drive to learn more.
Did the other girl think of her as a rival of sorts? A friend with like-minded ideals? It was hard to tell; Dalila was a bit more reserved than the others. They didn’t talk on the walk back to the resting quarters, just saying ‘Goodnight’ to each other before entering their rooms. Thinking on it, she wasn’t really close to anyone there when all the other Initiates seemed to know each other so well. Hopefully it was something she could fix in future days when she actually got the chance to learn alongside them a bit - Someone was in her room!
She swiveled about to face the figure on her bed and then paused as she realized who it was.
“Don’t stop on my account,” Dawn said, stretching her legs out a bit as she sat there. “Looked like you had a lot on your mind.”
“Dawn!” Happiness, then confusion, filled her mind. Why was Dawn here and not down there for the feast? She asked as much. “What are you doing here?”
“Looking to talk to you, of course. I... could say I’ve been busy since yesterday morning, and I have, but I bet you’re wondering why I left you here without even checking in, right?”
Elizabeth slowly nodded. “Among other things.”
“I wanted to see what you thought of this place. Your thoughts, unfiltered from any input of my own. Admittedly, I’d like to have given you more time, but that’s something we all lack.” The next part, “All of us, save one,” was murmured, barely hearable.
Elizabeth frowned. “Just about this place? You dumped me in here, and I barely had any time! I was so worried about if I’d make it or not, knowing so much less than them.” She paced back and forth as she talked.
“But you did make it. Here you are, a Dream Warrior,” she pointed out. “What does that tell you?”
“Well, either that you really did manage to teach me everything that was needed to pass, or...” Dawn’s emotional state didn’t seem to change (to Elizabeth’s mental sense), but there was a gleam in her eyes that implied she was on the right track. “Or that the lessons here weren’t really needed to pass it. I mean, they did help; some people mentioned that, but it was less like the actual lessons needed, more like vague comments. I suppose it could be that I already had all the traits needed to be a Dream Warrior too.” Dawn chuckled at that.
“Looks like someone’s getting too big for her robes to think that much of herself.” Elizabeth blushed, but after laughing, Dawn nodded. “Hey, it is a theory; I suppose it could be true.”
“But it isn’t. I know that much,” Elizabeth responded, pulling the locket out of her pocket. “There were tests I failed. Or should have failed at least, by the merits in which a Dream Warrior is judged. I definitely passed some too, but it doesn’t feel quite right.”
“Oh? Why not? It could be that they just took a generalized assessment of you and decided that even with some factors that didn’t work or weren’t perfect, you still had enough potential and aligned values to become a Dream Warrior.”
Elizabeth looked at the Dream Warrior exasperated. “Why are you taking this point of view? I already know you aren’t happy with the testing system, so why defend it?”
“I could just be upset with the people who give the answers ahead of time, not the Trials themselves.”
“But that’s part of the system of how they run the Trials!” She was only realizing that as she said it, but it was true, with how the Adepts teaching the Hopefuls dropped hints just right to get them on the right path. Very subtly, but...
“Enough that they can let pass everyone they want, while making them feel virtuous.” Elizabeth turned her head to stare suspiciously at the woman who said she couldn’t read minds but seemed to be proving the opposite. Shuffling to the side, Dawn patted the bed, and Elizabeth sat down beside her.
“They certainly didn’t seem to be praising my skills, though, just commenting on how well you must have taught me even though we... barely... why are you just nodding your head and grinning!?” Elizabeth demanded. The small smile that had appeared on Dawn's face was wiped away instantly.
“I thought it was a bit ironic that despite my best efforts, you still faced all the problems I did. Rest assured, I do care, and I didn’t want that to happen to you.” She paused for a moment, thinking before posing her own question. “You know who my teacher was, correct?”
“Yeah, Grandmaster… Tenga.” Elizabeth stopped cold as she realized for the first time what that really meant. Everyone may have praised Dawn’s skills, but they practically worshipped Tenga. He was 700 years old and had brought the world out of the dark times before he arrived and founded the very order. Being compared to someone like that… “I’m sorry, Dawn, I hadn’t considered how it would be for you. You must think my complaints are childish.”
She shook her head. “No more so than my own complaints, which I still have to this day, so who’s the real child?” Dawn gave the young girl a goofy grin before getting more serious. “I didn’t want to overshadow you, for my presence to be seen as a smothering oak tree hanging over you constantly, which is part of why I left you on your own. So you could prove yourself and wouldn’t have to be compared to me. I’m sorry it didn’t work.”
After a pause, Dawn spoke again. “You’re right. I do have problems with how things are run here, how those with potential are pushed through just because they can be strong. None of them are strong in the real way. That’s why I gave you such little foreknowledge of the test; I wanted to be sure - as sure as I could be - that you passing was because you were truly capable of being a Dream Warrior. The defenses I gave were just me paraphrasing others who have defended a system long in need of an overhaul, and that’s what I want to do with your help. Fix the Order.” Elizabeth couldn’t help but let out a gasp at that. The idea of her managing to help with something like that was huge.
“But that’s in the future; for now, just focus on learning what you can. The time will pass quicker than you think, and with any luck, you’ll be able to reach your full potential before I need your help.”
“Do you really think I can?”
“Absolutely. Remember, the surety of your strength wasn’t just for my sake. You passed the trials on your own and did splendidly. You’ll be as strong as I am someday. Now, I’ll get out of your room and let you get some rest; you don’t need an old woman jabbering at you all night.”
Elizabeth let out a small giggle. “You’re not old. Wait, are you?” It was still hard to get a read on her age, and Dawn gave her a mock shocked look.
“You shouldn’t ask a lady her age.” Dawn got up and turned away, beginning to walk out. “Anyways, I just wanted to say that and... I’m proud of you. You did good today.”
Elizabeth beamed at the praise, then collapsed into her bed. While being tired was the excuse she used for the others, it was also true. Mentally, emotionally, and physically, it had been a tiring day. There were somehow even more unknown things lying in her way, but she felt relieved too just from meeting with Dawn. She drifted off to sleep, finding something incredible in her dreams...
