Chapter 4 #2
“Jackson. Luna. Ryan. Sofia. Clive. Rynlee. Gia,” he called, listing our names in order.
I swallowed as his eyes landed on me last. The weight of his gaze settled in my gut like a stone.
“Timing and agility are everything,” he said.
“This is your first real challenge; it will push you to your limits. But lucky for you, today I’ve slowed the mechanics and added safety nets for first timers. ”
A small ripple of relief passed through the group.
“But don’t get comfortable,” Firebeard stated.
“Come the Fourfold Rite… there won’t be nets.
If you slip from a rope, it’s a thirty-foot drop, miss a jump and the moving blocks will crush you, so stay alert.
” He turned and gestured to the stone arch.
“And remember: one step too slow. One thought too soft. And the Rite takes you.”
He pulled a pocket watch from his belt and clicked it open with a snap. “Jackson, you ready?” The dark-haired boy at the front of the line gave a single nod, stealing himself. “Go.”
The timer started. Jackson sprinted inside the maze, vanishing around the first corner.
And so, it began. One by one, my unit members disappeared into the maze.
Each step closer to the entrance, my heart pounded harder against my ribs until it felt like I couldn’t breathe.
But Gia was right; I could do this. I had to.
If I wanted to survive here, if I wanted to prove I wasn’t dead weight, I had to try. At least for now, there were safety nets. If I fell, I wouldn’t die.
Probably.
I glanced back at Gia and gave her a thumbs-up, my smile shaky but determined.
She nodded encouragingly as Firebeard called my name.
I stepped into the mouth of the maze. A shimmering magical map revealed itself in front of me, briefly pulsing with paths and symbols, before vanishing in a blink.
I forced myself to hold on to the memory of it, visualizing the left turn, the markings, the way the wind blew through the corridor like a guide.
Darting right, I focused on my footing, following the trail of blowing leaves that matched what I’d seen on the depiction.
Sharp turns, narrow pathways, dead ends, and shifting corridors.
My legs burned, but I pushed through. After several minutes, I emerged, sweaty and breathless, at the second tier.
Jackson, Luna, and Ryan had already made it to the top.
Clive was pushing through tier three, and Sofia was climbing up to the fourth. I barely had time to catch my breath. Stone blocks shifted ahead of me. Moving platforms, timed just wrong enough to make failure likely. Timing was everything. I stepped onto the first block and waited.
When the second block passed, I jumped, misjudging the distance and slammed my knee into the edge as I landed hard. “Fuck,” I gasped, pain blooming up my thigh. Gritting my teeth, I pushed to my feet and leapt again. Then again.
Block by block, pain lancing through my leg with each impact, I finally reached the far platform just as Gia emerged from the maze.
I gave her a subtle nod before shifting my weight onto my good leg and continuing up the winding path. The next jump was clean despite the ache in my body, and I grabbed the rope ahead, swinging to the following ledge, then climbed upward, arms screaming, ribs tight, lungs on fire.
Tier three was brutal. I sprinted toward another gap, this one wider than the last, and ran hard, launching myself forward. I was short. My side cracked against the edge, a flash of blinding pain exploding through my chest as I scrambled, nails clawing at the stone.
My hands slipped. “Shit,” I breathed, heart plummeting as I dangled.
I made the mistake of looking down. Big mistake.
I was so high. “Okay, breathe. Focus, Rynlee,” I whispered to myself, pulling my gaze up and swinging my legs.
Thank the gods for flexibility. I may not have been a fighter, but I was bendy.
I got my right leg hooked over the rim and, with a final grunt of effort, rolled my body onto the platform.
A sigh of relief escaped me as I heard Ryan shouting from above.
“Come on, Ryn!” he cheered, pumping a fist. I managed a weak thumbs-up.
Everything hurt. My ribs were screaming, my knee ached, and my chest felt like it had collapsed, but I was still here.
And I couldn’t stop now. Tier four waited.
The slope was steep, and as I climbed it, a low rumble echoed from above.
A boulder massive and fast rolled straight toward me.
“What the—” I leaped out of the way just in time, the boulder crashing past and vanishing over the edge. My legs were shaking, and my lungs burned from the exertion.
Okay. Don’t stop. I sprinted again, as another one barreled down. Spotting a small alcove, I lunged. It clipped my side as I dove, slamming me against the wall. I choked back a cry as pain surged through my ribs. I leaned against the stone, drenched in sweat, trying to breathe through it.
One more. Just one more. Peeking out, I saw the slope turn into a sheer, angled wall.
The last climb. Almost there. I ran, pushing my legs to the max, lungs screaming, and as I reached the incline, my foot slipped.
My body slammed into the rock, and I went sliding back, hands clawing uselessly, feet scrambling for grip.
“Shit, shit, shit—” I slid over the edge. A scream built in my throat, but the air stole it from me as I fell, wind whipping past my ears, the world spinning, and then—
Snap.
The net caught me. I gasped, clutching my chest, every nerve lit up with pain and disbelief. I lay there, stunned, panting. Alive. Touching my ribs and my leg, I winced as the ache reminded me, I wasn’t dreaming. I was hurt, but I was still here. Still breathing.
In the medical ward, I was propped up on a cot while my aunt carefully wrapped my knee with practiced precision.
I hissed softly as the bandage tightened, but it was nothing compared to the sharp throb radiating from my ribs.
I dabbed cooling salve over the bruised and cracked bones; the herb’s numbing effect already kicking in before Mira helped me wrap them, too.
It had taken nearly twenty minutes to get out of that damn net.
With lesser magic and Professor Firebeard’s help, I’d finally managed to free myself, but it was still embarrassing.
And once my feet touched solid ground again, Gia wrapped me in a bone-crushing hug, and Ryan followed suit, lifting me as if I weighed nothing.
Now, soft pillows supported me in a cot, and painkillers finally dulled the sharpest edges.
“Well, that was definitely embarrassing,” I muttered, leaning back with a sigh.
“Could’ve been worse,” Ryan offered, amusement gleaming in his brown eyes as he shrugged those broad shoulders.
I gave him a look. “Oh yeah? How so?”
“Some people didn’t even make it through the maze,” he said matter-of-factly. “You made it to tier four. I’d say that’s less embarrassing.” That earned a laugh from me, one that instantly made me regret it as my ribs flared in protest.
“Ow, damn. Okay, okay. You’re not wrong,” I admitted, grinning through the wince. Just then, the door creaked open, and Alaric rushed in like a gust of concern and pine-scented warmth.
“Ryn, I heard what happened. Are you okay?” he asked, crossing the room in three quick strides. His face was a mask of worry, and for a second, my chest ached for reasons that had nothing to do with fractured ribs.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I replied, trying to sound braver than I actually was. “Couple cracked ribs, one pissed-off knee… and maybe a little psychological damage from falling off a mountain.” He didn’t say anything, just wrapped his arms gently around my shoulders and held me.
“Thank the gods you’re okay,” he murmured against the crown of my head. My heart tried to escape my chest. My neck warmed like someone had set a fire under my skin.
“Well, you know me… tougher than I look,” I replied, voice a little shaky as I pulled back.
“That you are.” He beamed—that grin, the one that always made me forget how to breathe.
“Anyway, I’ve gotta run, but I had to check on you.
” I nodded, giving him a smile. “See you around,” he added as he turned to go.
The second he was gone; I looked back to find both Gia and Ryan staring at me with smug little expressions.
“What?” I asked, already dreading whatever was coming.
Ryan leaned in, grinning. “Nothing, Miss I-Look-Like-a-Tomato.”