Descent into the Trial Grounds

Dawn broke over Aetheris Academy, casting golden light over the towering spires. The morning air was heavy with tension, thick enough to choke on. Every student knew what lay ahead. Today, they would step into the Trial Grounds.

Caelum stood at the edge of the gathering crowd, his thoughts still clouded by Elias's cryptic words from the previous night. His team had been chosen for him, but the unease of being paired with Elias lingered like a whisper in the back of his mind. What does he know that I don't?

Varian, standing beside him with his usual air of quiet authority, spoke in a measured tone. "You look like you're about to face your execution."

Caelum exhaled sharply. "Maybe I am."

Before he could respond further, a pulse of energy rippled through the courtyard. The sky darkened unnaturally, and a massive archway of shimmering light materialized before them. It was a portal—but unlike any simple teleportation spell. It hummed with something more... ancient.

Headmaster Orpheon stood before the gateway, his presence commanding absolute silence. "The time has come," he declared. "Step forward, and embrace your fate."

One by one, students walked into the portal, vanishing into the unknown. When Caelum's turn arrived, he hesitated for only a breath before stepping through.

The sensation was violent.

The moment Caelum entered the Trial Grounds, his body felt like it was being pulled apart and stitched back together all at once. He landed hard on a patch of cracked earth, the air around him humming with unstable energy.

He barely had time to take in his surroundings before an earsplitting roar shook the air.

Mountains stretched endlessly in the distance, jagged peaks clawing at the sky. Rivers of molten silver cut through the land, their glow unnatural and eerie. Above, storm clouds churned with a violet hue, flashes of lightning striking in unnatural patterns.

The Trial Grounds were alive.

A soft shuffle behind him made him whirl around. Aerin and Selene stood nearby, disoriented but otherwise unharmed. Elias was the only one missing.

"Where's—" Caelum started, but then a cold voice interrupted him.

"Here."

Elias stepped out from the shadow of a crumbling ruin, his expression unreadable. He surveyed their surroundings as if he had been here before.

Caelum narrowed his eyes. "You don't seem surprised."

Elias met his gaze evenly. "That's because I'm not."

Aerin scoffed. "Alright, enough of the mystery act. What's our first move?"

Selene scanned the sky warily. "Orpheon said we only need to survive—but something tells me it won't be as simple as just waiting this out."

She was right.

The ground trembled beneath them. Then, from the distant cliffs, dark figures began to emerge. Not beasts. Something worse.

They were humanoid, but their forms flickered like broken images, shifting in and out of reality. Their eyes were hollow pits of swirling darkness. Abyssal Specters.

"Move," Elias ordered, already stepping back. "Now."

The first specter lunged.

Caelum barely dodged as its claw-like appendage sliced through the air where he had stood moments ago. He twisted, channeling his energy, and sent a blast of force toward the creature. The attack passed through it like mist.

"They're not physical," Aerin growled. "How do we fight something that doesn't exist properly?"

Selene's hands glowed with silver energy, and with a fluid motion, she summoned chains of light that wrapped around the nearest specter. It shrieked, dissolving into nothingness.

Caelum steadied himself, drawing on his own power. This is a test. It's always a test.

But then, Elias spoke again. "This isn't part of the trial."

Caelum turned sharply. "What?"

"These creatures," Elias murmured. "They don't belong to the Trial Grounds."

Something was very, very wrong.

The sky above them darkened further, and the air grew heavy, suffocating. The very fabric of reality twisted. The Trial Grounds were already unpredictable, but now… it felt like something else had taken notice of their presence.

Selene clenched her fists. "If this isn't part of the trial, then what the hell are we fighting?"

No one had the answer.

And then, far in the distance, a figure watched. Unmoving. Hidden in the fractured landscape.

Something older than the academy. Something waiting.

The Trial had begun. But so had something else.