The next transition loomed ahead, air to fire. Below me, a sea of flames began to coalesce, forming what looked like the back of a massive serpent. Its scales flickered between crimson and gold, undulating hypnotically. I'd need to time my drop perfectly to land on its back rather than in the inferno surrounding it.
I closed my eyes for just a moment, gathering what little strength remained. My muscles screamed in protest as I rose to a crouching position.
The wind path beneath me gave way just as I pushed off, sending me plummeting toward the fire serpent.
I landed hard on its back, the scales searing through my clothes. The creature roared, a sound like a thousand bonfires igniting at once, and began to thrash wildly. I dug my fingers between its scales, finding purchase despite the blistering heat. Each movement sent waves of agony through my burned palms, but I held on, knowing that letting go meant certain death.
The serpent twisted and dove, carrying me through tunnels of molten rock. Embers and ash filled my lungs with each desperate breath. My vision blurred from the heat and smoke, making it nearly impossible to spot the transition to earth. There! A glimpse of green amid the orange inferno. I steeled myself, waited for the serpent to arch near the patch of earth, then flung myself sideways.
I crashed onto a floating garden of crystal flowers and obsidian grass. The impact shattered several flowers, sending razor-sharp shards slicing across my arms and legs. Blood mingled with sweat and soot as I struggled to my feet, the garden already crumbling at its edges.
"Keep moving," I gasped to myself, scanning for the water transition. The obsidian grass cut through my boots with each step, leaving bloody footprints in my wake. Ahead, the garden gave way to one of the waterfalls that defied gravity. I pushed my exhausted body into a run, ignoring the fresh cuts opening with each stride.
I dove into the ascending waterfall, the sudden cold a shock after the serpent's heat. The water carried me upward with crushing force, compressing my chest until breathing became impossible. Just as spots began to dance before my eyes, the current shifted, hurling me outward into a vast chamber filled with floating bubbles of water.
Each bubble contained something different, some held fish with too many eyes, others housed miniature storms complete with lightning. I bounced between them, each impact sending me in a new direction. My waterlogged clothes weighed me down, making it hard to control my trajectory. One bubble burst against my shoulder, releasing a swarm of tiny eels that clung to my skin, their minute teeth delivering painful shocks.
I swatted them away and pushed toward what appeared to be a tunnel of swirling wind at the far side of the chamber. The air element would be next. As I approached, the bubbles began to pop in rapid succession behind me, creating a wave of chaos that threatened to overtake me.
I flung myself into the wind tunnel just as the last bubble burst. The wind snatched me up violently, spinning me in dizzying circles. The tunnel walls sparkled with electricity that arced dangerously close with each rotation. My hair stood on end, the charged air making it difficult to think clearly.
The tunnel split suddenly into three paths. I had seconds to choose, but which followed the pattern? I squinted against the rushing air, noticing subtle color differences in each path. The leftmost had a reddish tinge, fire would be next. I twisted my body, angling toward it just as the wind changed direction.
The tunnel ejected me into open space, and for one terrifying moment, I was in free fall with nothing beneath me. Then I saw it, a massive bird composed entirely of blue flames, soaring upward to intercept my descent.
Somehow I landed on it's back which was surprisingly warm, and that's when I caught sight of the prodigies again.
Soren Valdris moved through the elemental chaos like it was a carefully choreographed dance, each step precise, each movement efficient. He didn't just follow the pattern, he commanded it, forcing transitions to occur where he needed them.
The Crescent Isles girl was surfing a wave of water that should have evaporated in the intense heat around her, but somehow remained intact, carrying her effortlessly through the worst of the chaos.
And Elias... Elias Aurellian wasn't even trying. He strolled casually across a bridge of light that formed itself before him, hands in his pockets, looking for all the world like he was taking a pleasant afternoon walk rather than navigating a demented elemental obstacle course.
Must be nice, I thought bitterly, clinging to the phoenix's back as it swooped through a field of lightning.
The bird banked sharply, nearly throwing me off before diving toward a massive floating arena made of black stone veined with glowing magma. I leapt from its back moments before it dissolved into embers, rolling to absorb the impact as I hit the stone floor.
Around me, other students were arriving, some gracefully, others less so. We'd reached some kind of waypoint, it seemed, a momentary respite from the elemental chaos.
I counted roughly sixty-eight students gathered in the arena. Less than half of those who'd survived the first trial. Finn was nowhere to be seen, and I felt a twinge of worry. Had he figured out the pattern? Was he still fighting his way through?
Before I could dwell on it, the arena trembled, and a pulse of magic surged through the air. The elemental chaos outside seemed to freeze, hanging suspended in time.
Professor Zephyr appeared at the center of the arena, materializing from a swirl of lightning and wind.
"The first section is complete," he announced. His voice was as cold and dispassionate as ever, but I swore I detected a hint of surprise, as if he hadn't expected quite so many of us to make it this far.
A ripple of relief passed through the gathered students. Some sank to their knees, others leaned against each other for support.
"Do not celebrate yet," Zephyr cautioned, his golden eyes narrowing. "The second section begins now."
The trembling intensified. The veins of magma in the stone floor pulsed brighter, then dimmed, then brightened again, like a heartbeat.
Then I heard it. A sound so faint I almost missed it beneath the ambient roar of the elements.
Whispers.
The air around the arena's edges began to ripple and distort. Translucent figures took shape, humanoid at first glance. At first, they looked like other students. Then I saw my own face staring back at me.
Reflections.
Copies of ourselves.
But twisted.
Each one was warped, as if molded from the raw chaos of the Crucible itself. Their features flickered, some had stone where their skin should be, others dripped with liquid flame, their eyes swirling with the abyss itself.
"The Echoes," someone nearby whispered, voice tight with fear.
And of course they attacked without hesitation.