I stood shoulder to shoulder with others, mostly young men, their eyes sharp with ambition, some with arrogance, others with anxiety.
I kept my head slightly low, my breathing calm. No one here needed to suspect what I really was.
The first trial overseer was a tall, lean man clad in dark robes embroidered with streaks of silver thread, like veins of light through midnight.
His gaze was sharp as he stepped forward with a tray. Resting on it were dozens of medium-sized crystals, black and faintly glowing with inner energy.
"These are fragments of the abyss," He said, his voice cutting through the chatter and commanding silence.
"Dark element crystals, taken from the beasts who dwell in the shadows. To stand in this sect, you must first prove your ability to absorb mana."
A ripple of unease passed through the group. None of us were given instructions, techniques, or hints. They expected us to know already how to absorb the cores or to face the consequences.
