"Ugh..." I sat up, my head spinning. I reached for the parchment, but before reading it, I yelled, "Guys, wake up! Hey!" Silas was the first to stir and jump off the ground. "Were we drugged?" he asked. "Most likely so," Alexa, another girl from our squad, said as she stood up. "What now?" I lifted my hand with the parchment. "This..." I began to read the letter, which was written in an official format:
" THE ORDER
Your task is to locate a dragon-linked artifact within the mountain range. Cadets must find and deliver it to Veritas within five days. While sufficient artifacts are available for each squad, in the event that multiple squads locate the same objective, competition is permissible, and the most capable shall prevail. Success will depend on effective planning and the ability to adapt to unforeseen circumstances. All strategies and tactics employed to achieve victory are acceptable and must be documented in your reports upon return to the Academy. Use any means necessary; bring back that which will ensure your vanguard's victory in the trials to come."
"So... that means we should start our search immediately," Tomris said, coming over to me. "There's something on the other side," I added, turning the parchment over. "It looks like a map, but not quite," I noticed.
"Wonderful. We've been dumped in the middle of nowhere with some pathetic excuse for a map, and now we're expected to survive and hunt down some artifact—the location of which is anyone's guess, by the way. And since there are fifty-two other squads, we'll probably have to fight to the death for it. Just brilliant! Let the Hunger Games begin!" Felix retorted, walking toward Ashbun.
We all rolled our eyes. "Stop whining," Grayon snapped back. "It's not a standard map, or at least not one that shows our current location. Do you see these red dots?" I pointed them out. "They probably mark where the artifacts are. If only we had a real, functional map..." I shook my head.
"Guys, I have a map," Ivan, a boy with freckles from our squad, spoke up, catching our attention. He pulled a folded map from his backpack. As we all looked at him in surprise, he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I just thought it might come in handy."
Silas took the map from his hands and spread it out on the ground. "First, we need to get our bearings, then we choose which artifact to go after."
I looked at the map, then stood up to scan our surroundings. The sun was going down, and visibility was fading fast. I walked toward a cluster of trees, Silas and Grayon following close behind. I checked the bark to see which side the moss was growing on. "This side is north, that side is south," I pointed out. "And the sun sets in the west," Silas added. "I'll climb the tree and see if I can spot anything to help determine our exact location," Grayon finished.
Back at the clearing, Tomris placed the parchment over Ivan's map. "Now, let's figure this out." I walked back to join them. "I think the parchment only shows the areas where artifacts are hidden. The map of the continent is too large for more detail," Alexa noted.
"Guys, there's a river and a canyon not far from here!" Grayon shouted, sliding down from the tree. "Perfect!" I looked at Ivan's map. The river meandered through the canyon range, mirroring the lines on the parchment. "Here," I pointed to a specific spot. "The Serpent River. Now we just need to figure out which section we're in."
We gathered our gear and galloped off, following Grayon's lead. By the time we reached the canyon, darkness had fully set in. "Let's stop here and figure out our next move," Silas said, dismounting his horse.
We divided the chores among ourselves. Grayon and Felix took the first watch, Ivan and Silas pitched the tents, while Alexa, Tomris, and I prepared the food. After a while, we all gathered around the glowing embers to eat. I held both the map and the parchment, trying to analyze them in the dim light.
I turned the parchment every which way, studying the vague marks, and sighed. "It's useless." I held it up toward the fire to see better when Felix, sitting next to me, suddenly yelled, "LOOK!"
I jumped, nearly dropping everything. "Why are you shouting?" Tomris retorted. "She could have dropped it into the fire!" Felix ignored her, snatching the parchment from my hands and holding it closer to the heat. "I shouted because I saw this."
As the heat hit the surface, hidden ink began to crawl across the page like veins. Before our eyes, the parchment transformed, revealing a full, detailed map of the Obsidian mountain range and everything surrounding it.
"Guys, there's a river and a canyon not far from here!" Grayon shouted, sliding down from the tree. "Perfect!" I looked at Ivan's map. The river meandered through the canyon range, mirroring the lines on the parchment. "Here," I pointed to a specific spot. "The Serpent River. Now we just need to figure out which section we're in."
We gathered our gear and galloped off, following Grayon's lead. By the time we reached the canyon, darkness had fully set in. "Let's stop here and figure out our next move," Silas said, dismounting his horse.
We divided the chores among ourselves. Grayon and Felix took the first watch, Ivan and Silas pitched the tents, while Alexa, Tomris, and I prepared the food. After a while, we all gathered around the glowing embers to eat. I held both the map and the parchment, trying to analyze them in the dim light.
I turned the parchment every which way, studying the vague marks, and sighed. "It's useless." I held it up toward the fire to see better when Felix, sitting next to me, suddenly yelled, "LOOK!"
I jumped, nearly dropping everything. "Why are you shouting?" Tomris retorted. "She could have dropped it into the fire!" Felix ignored her, snatching the parchment from my hands and holding it closer to the heat. "I shouted because I saw this."
As the heat hit the surface, hidden ink began to crawl across the page like veins. Before our eyes, the parchment transformed, revealing a full, detailed map of the Obsidian mountain range and everything surrounding it.
"Wow... so unusual," Ivan muttered. Silas came closer to look at it. "It's..." he started. "...Ignis ink," we said in unison.
"So now we can choose where to go to get an artifact," Tomris said. "Which one is closest?" Alexa asked. "We can't just choose the closest one," Grayon opposed her. "Why not?" Alexa disagreed. "Because, how many other squads do you think have already discovered this?" he pointed at the parchment in Felix's hands. "We can't risk our time."
I watched the fire. We had five days in total, but we also had to consider the time needed to reach Veritas on time. I looked at the map, then walked toward the canyon edge. I looked up at the moon; it was shining brightly, as if showing us the way. Then, I looked hundreds of meters down at the river, then up again, tracing the line from where the river was coming, all the way up until I saw the mountain peaks.
"...Peaks," I whispered and hurried back toward the fire.
Tomris was painting lines on the parchment so we could look at it without needing the fire. "Good work, Tomris," I said, and she smiled.
"There should be a waterfall not too far away," Silas was explaining. "If we hurry, we can get there first." "Or we can follow the canyon range and go deeper into the mountains, to the peaks. I don't think many will think of going there," I said.
He lifted his eyes as if thinking. "It's too dangerous. We don't know what kind of beasts we can meet there. Crag-gnawers, prowlers... and I'm not even talking about Airgulls," Grayon retorted.
"Don't worry about that, we have a Banshee to deal with them," Felix retorted with a wide smile. "A what?" Grayon and Ivan asked at once. "A Banshee—a girl who can kill with her screams... oh... I mean Tomris," he said in his sarcastic tone.
We all started to laugh. "What?!" Tomris hit him. "Hey! That hurts!" Felix tried to dodge but still got hit.
"Anyway, we should decide now," Tomris said, sitting beside me. "I'm with Elain," Felix said first. "I'm not sure... but it's better to die trying than to get defeated with nothing," Grayon said next. "We are with you," Alexa and Ivan agreed. "Then it's decided. We are moving at dawn," Tomris said.
We took turns on watch. The wind was cold, but the fire kept us warm. The smoke attracted a few beasts, but they didn't dare approach the flames. At the first sight of sunrise, we moved out.
Following the map, we traced the canyon's edge along the Serpent River. A few crag-gnawers lunged at our horses, but we managed to gallop past without harm. The wind howled in our ears, masking the sound of the terrain changing beneath us. We didn't see the fractured ground until it was almost too late. Nyx's hooves sent stones skittering into the abyss. Silas and I nearly plummeted off the edge, halting just in time, our hearts racing faster than our mounts.
Silas peered at the map. Felix came up behind him, frowning. "It doesn't show the cliff. The map is different from the reality." "What do we do now?" Alexa asked, a flicker of fear in her eyes. "If we go after a different artifact, we'll lose too much time," Grayon argued. "We're sticking to the plan," Silas insisted. "How? I don't see any bridges here," Grayon shot back.
"Don't be such a pessimist, Grayon," Tomris said, grabbing his shoulder. "We just need a different route." "She's right. It will take longer, but we can reach the mountain peaks by tomorrow if we go through the forest," I added. "Besides, Silas is the best at navigating the woods."
"Guys, if we don't want to fill our 'joyful journey' with fog and fluffy prowlers, we'd better hurry. I don't want to be an entertaining dinner for some feline predator," Felix remarked, mounting Ashbun. "I—I agree with him," Ivan stuttered.
We resumed our journey through the forest. Even in the thickest fog, Silas led us with a steady hand. We moved slower to save energy. "I wish we had dragons," Felix sighed. "Imagine flying over canyons or forests in no time and being the first ones back." "Life would be easier then," Ivan agreed. "Dragons are not pets," Silas corrected them. "The first Reidars earned their titles. Dragons chose them for qualities only they could see."
As we passed through giant trees, thick creepers coiled around the trunks, each crowned with a strange, glowing bud. "When I was little, my father told us stories," Tomris continued. "He said dragons appreciate strength, courage, and intelligence. But the bond is difficult. Some Reidars couldn't handle the power and burned out." "Like when we manifest our Flare?" Alexa asked. "Much more intense," I explained. "We have only a flicker of what the Reidars held. The first of them had willpower like no one else. They created alliances that saved us from the Umbrals hundreds of years ago. Their powers were unique—shapeshifting, seeing through walls for miles, turning anything they touched to ash."
"Whoa... that's a cool ability," Felix said, amazed. "You didn't know?" Tomris asked. "Well... I knew some of it. But my great-great-grandfather was the last Reidar in our family. I didn't have anyone to tell me the old stories," Felix answered quietly.
The sky grew darker and the fog thickened. "The power you got depended on the dragon's nature and your own character. A perfect symbiosis," I resumed. "There were ten types of dragons: Black, Gold, Blue, Grey, Crimson, Emerald, Azure, Silver, Amethyst, and White. Each lineage had its own secret names."
"You know a lot about them," Alexa noted. "You're from the North, right?" "Yes," I said, fiddling with Nyx's mane. "I was born in the North, in Arcanumgard," Alexa said softly. "But we moved to the capital ten years ago. It was... sad to hear it had been destroyed." I gripped Nyx's reins tighter and fell silent, the mention of my home stinging like a fresh wound.
"Let's stop here. It's dark," Grayon said, calling a halt. "We'll reach the peaks tomorrow."
That night, my sleep was restless.I woke up gasping just as the fire was dying down to embers. It was Ivan and Felix's turn on watch, but the forest had gone deathly silent—a silence that screamed of danger. Suddenly, a pair of glowing, feline eyes flashed in the fog, followed by another.
"PHANTOM PROWLERS!" Felix's voice cracked the stillness as he drew his blades.
The beasts didn't just run; they shimmered, their fur blending perfectly with the swirling mist. One lunged from the shadows, its claws aimed at Ivan's throat. I scrambled up, reaching for my weapon. "Behind you!" I screamed.
The struggle was chaotic. The prowlers moved like smoke, appearing and disappearing in the grey haze. We all jumped into the fray, back-to-back. Silas used his strength to pin one down while Tomris and Alexa drove the others back with coordinated strikes. I managed to catch one mid-leap, my blade finding its mark. After a brief but intense skirmish, the remaining predators realized we weren't easy prey and vanished back into the woods. Breathing hard, we waited for a moment, but the forest remained quiet. We didn't dare sleep again and moved out at the first sight of sunrise.
The next day, by the time the sun reached its zenith, we arrived at the base of the mountain. "We should continue on foot," Tomris said. "The horses will slip on the scree." "Nyx can handle it, he's used to the North," I said, "but if we want to leave them here, let's do it."
We climbed on foot. The wind was a physical force, slowing our progress. We had to shout to be heard.
"WHERE DO YOU THINK THEY HID IT?" Grayon yelled.
"MAYBE IN A CAVE!" Felix shouted back, fighting the gale. "I HOPE THE DAMN THING HAS SOME WEIGHT TO IT, BECAUSE THIS WIND IS READY TO BLOW ME OFF THIS MOUNTAIN AT ANY SECOND!". "LOOK FOR AN ENTRANCE!" Silas commanded. "THERE! A LEDGE!" Alexa pointed.
The path narrowed dangerously. We moved in single file, backs pressed against the freezing stone, the abyss yawning beneath us. Suddenly, a gust of wind nearly sent me over the edge. A firm hand caught me, pressing me back against the wall. "CAREFUL!" Silas yelled. "GUYS, I SEE IT! A CAVE!" Tomris shouted.
We scrambled inside, gasping for air. "That was terrifying. How are we supposed to get back down?" Alexa panted. "Let's find the artifact first," Grayon replied. "But what does it look like?" Ivan asked, peering into the shadows. "It's pitch black in here."
"We can use our Flare," I said. I reached for the blue fire within me, touching the crack in the crystal. When I opened my eyes, my hands were glowing with a soft light. I looked around and saw that the others' hands were glowing too, reflecting the manifestation of our power.
"You did it!" Tomris hugged me tightly. I just smiled back at her, feeling a brief moment of warmth in the cold dampness.
We walked for what felt like an hour. "Is it a medallion? A sword?" Tomris wondered. "OR A STEELED EGG WITH A DRAGON EMBLEM?" Felix yelled, pointing his light upward.
The artifact was a massive, dark egg, encased in a metallic sheen with a dragon etched into its surface. It sat on a high, slick shelf. "Who would even put it that high up?" Ivan wondered. "The walls are too smooth to climb," Silas noted.
"We'll see about that!" Felix grinned, drawing his knives. "Elain, light my way!" I stepped forward, lifting my glowing hands to illuminate the rock face. Felix began his ascent, digging his blades into the stone. "Good job, Felix! Keep going!" Alexa encouraged him. "I expect a reward when I get down!" he shouted brazenly. "Save your breath and just keep climbing," Tomris retorted.
When he reached the ledge, he gripped the egg. "Guys, this thing is heavy! I can't climb down with it!" "Push it! I'll catch it!" Grayon shouted. Felix shoved the egg. It tumbled through the air, but just as Grayon reached out, a blade blossomed from his shoulder.
"Argh!" Grayon grunted. A blonde cadet stepped out of the shadows. "Thanks for the hard work," he said with a chillingly polite smile.
I didn't even notice my knives were already in my hands. The rest of my squad drew their weapons, bracing for the clash. More cadets from the rival squad emerged from the shadows, their eyes gleaming with cold ambition.
"Give it back!" Tomris shouted. "We reached it first! Find your own!" "Why should we?" a girl from their side shot back. "We all arrived at the same time. You just happened to spot it faster." "We don't want any more blood," I started, trying to keep my voice steady. "Just give it back, and we can all walk away."
"You want it? Then come and—" the blonde guy began, but he never finished. Felix dropped from the wall like a hawk, slamming the hilt of his knife into the guy's temple. "I didn't survive that hellish 'paradise' just to hand this over to you!" Felix roared as the blonde cadet crumpled to the ground.
Felix snatched the egg. Another cadet lunged at him, but Felix dodged with fluid grace. Silas stepped in to cover his flank, and the cave erupted into a blur of steel and shouts. "And here I thought we wouldn't have to fight!" Felix retorted over the din. He shoved the heavy egg into my arms. "Take this and Grayon and get out of here!" he barked at Tomris.
Tomris knocked one attacker aside and slung Grayon's arm over her shoulder. "We have to move!" she yelled. We turned and sprinted toward the light of the cave exit. "How... how are we going to get down with Grayon hurt?" I asked, my breath coming in ragged gasps. "One slip and we're dead." "If we can just stop the bleeding, it'll be enough," Grayon groaned, his face pale from the wound.
We could already see the blinding daylight of the exit when a massive, towering cadet cut us off. He was a brute, built like a wall of muscle. "No more running," he bellowed, lunging at me. I managed to land a solid kick, but he caught my ankle mid-air and tossed me against the cave wall. The impact knocked the wind out of my lungs, leaving me gasping for air. As I struggled to my feet, Tomris appeared behind him and buried her blade in his shoulder. He roared in pain, backhanding her with a force that sent her reeling.
I looked at the heavy egg in my hands, then at the looming edge of the cave exit. A desperate plan formed in my mind. "Hey! Big guy!" I yelled, waving the artifact. "You want this? Then come and get it!"
I bolted toward the light, the weight of the egg straining my muscles. He thundered after me, driven by pure rage. My plan was to stop at the very edge, letting his own momentum carry him over. But as I reached the mouth of the cave, my foot hit a patch of loose scree. I slipped.
Gravity took hold. The brute, unable to stop his charge, skidded against my leg and flipped over the ledge. As he plummeted into the abyss, his hand shot out and clamped around my ankle like a vice, dragging me down with him.
In those final, terrifying seconds, I managed to heave the egg back toward the ledge. The last thing I saw was the look of pure horror on Tomris's face as she reached out, her scream echoing through the peaks. "ELAINEEEE!"