Every high-level individual is dangerous. An honest [Merchant], at least, as honest as one might be in the trade, leveled high enough could give any combat class a hard enough time. Imagine a Level 20 [Bandit] forced into an [Advantaged Negotiation] by a Level 30 [Merchant]. He'd be forced into negotiation and might as well throw any ideas of robbery away. By then any [Caravan Guards] would be able to clean up.

- Excerpt from To Do With Classes

The room that the color patched man led them to was the size of an auditorium, one meant for an audience large enough for a football game. They were fully underground now and Jayke spied the spires of stone that hung from the ceiling. The cave-like room echoed with the sound of hundreds of pairs of feet. Their footfalls echoed off into the cavernous shadows.

Like him, the rest of the crowd stared around in awe. Others were more calculating, quieter. Jayke found himself somewhere between the two and leaning towards the third.

"Echo!" A lizard-like humanoid yelled. The crest adorning his head and neck widened in delight when the sound returned to him, louder and with reverb.

"This is amazing!" Someone said, clearly taken with the vast cave.

"How'd they manage to cram this place right below the building?" A younger voice, one belonging to someone that looked part plant and part crab.

"It's the Coterie. It's not a surprise." A rock-like being rumbled.

"The Marketplace Between is larger than it initially seems." Another spoke. "There's an entire underground complex. You all haven't researched?"

"Research? We're here to join the Coterie, not become [Researchers]!" Someone quipped.

"Foolish." A voice rumbled annoyed. "The Underways are the closest source of danger in proximity to the bazarr. It'd be a mistake to ignore their possible role in the testing."

A few heads in the crowd nodded, examining the cave with interest and a little trepidation. The conversations devolved into excited whispers, acute observations, but most of all, curious stares at the man who was waiting for them to all quiet down.

Jayke was still looking around, trying to spot another human among the crowd. "Damn." He said when he came up short.

Oz nudged him. "Do you have [Manasight]?" The blue man was also staring at the branch leader. Jayke picked up on his meaning, a Skill.

"No." He replied, following his gaze. "What is it?"

"That man," Oz spoke into a lull of quiet. "He's a high level. Very high. High thirties at least." That seemed to get people's attention.

The immediate crowd around them quieted, found a handful of people staring as Oz did, then followed in Jayke's lead and began to await what the man had to say.

Something intangible about the man spoke power. Jayke was loathed to call it intuition, magic, or anything like that. It was subtler and less obvious than that. It was the complete ease at which he held himself in front of dozens of people. The way he stood or unflinchingly stared at the many who returned it. The relaxed smile. Jayke couldn't remember the last time he had seen something similar. It was a human subtlety.

Reserved confidence.

The man with patchwork colored skin spoke as soon as the whispers stopped. As if he had been waiting for the moment from the very beginning. "You lot don't look like you could last an hour in the Desert Blur. From the paleness of you. Yeah, some of you must've taken the Underways." His voice wasn't as encompassing as it had been. Wry and witty, youthful but not young. It was small in the vastness of the cave-like auditorium. "So these are the new buds looking to flower in the arms of the Coterie?" He paused and took everyone in before grinning crookedly. "I am your proctor. My name is Hucobb."

There were murmurs in the crowd. Jayke wondered how the rest of them were understanding each other. The foggy blue orb in his pocket allowed him the translations but the same shouldn't be true for everyone else. There were too many races and sounds for that to be plausible. Jayke blinked, realizing they probably didn't. Only a few were speaking languages that sounded similar to each other. Jayke could make out the differences between some of the speakers.

"What's the test you think? A show of power?" An anxious voice questioned.

"I hope it's firepower. That'll suit me best."

"Who knows. Doesn't look like an easy tester. And did you hear earlier? The people with mana vision must be sensing something big from the proctor." Someone responded, speculating.

"I heard they're getting more strict on talent. You won't make it in unless you really deserve it." One said.

Hucobb's eyes roamed over the mass of people. He held out a palm to his right. Suddenly, as if he had pulled it from mid-air, a staff formed. His hand gripped it firmly, only for him to prop himself against it. A clear jewel seemed to be set into the tip of his weapon.

He spoke, "You must be wondering about the test. I'm not one for structure, my magic speaks for that. So, in truth, I have no test yet. Though, there do seem to be a lot of you. As is, I can assure you that there are not enough available spots for everyone present to qualify. Of the spots I do have available, I expect only a third to be filled." He spoke in a tired manner that booked no arguments. A few voices protested but were cut off quickly. "The standards of the Coterie are high. Today, it is unfortunate for you that my standards are higher. However, if you're one to cry at that then it's likely you don't belong here. Challenges and obstacles are to be overcome, not whined at." The few quieted themselves at that.

He stroked his chin as he regarded the crowd. Jayke observed that a flowing beard might have been fitting, however, Hucobb only sported a close shaved chin. "I'll have to whittle you down somehow," Hucobb said to himself, though the sound carried across the crowd.

Jayke nudged Oz. "How are these tests normally carried out?"

"As you might guess, it depends on the proctor." Oz responded. The blue man was looking around the crowd. "Our tester seems a little eccentric, however. " He paused. "It's not out of the question that the test has already started either. Often times proctors are known to throw curveballs."

That put Jayke on edge.

Hucobb clapped, attracting everyone's attention again. "I have it. I'll need groups of two." He said. "Find someone nearby. That is your partner for this portion of the test. You pass or fail together." A mix of unease ran through the crowd. "That's life, no complaints."

Jayke shared a single glance with Oz and his group was formed.

What followed was the formation of fifty or so other groups of two. Hucobb's head for logistics was not impressive. People that found no partners were left to wander until they found another unmatched person. By sheer luck, the entire crowd turned out to be even. All the while, Hucobb waited patiently.

Arranged in a large circle, Hucobb stood in the middle. His easy countenance was in stark contrast to the tension encompassing most of the crowd. "I shall continuously test you until your numbers have been whittled down enough and you've impressed me sufficiently to earn a spot in this half-annuals' crop."

He spoke grandly. "For now, combat. Born of the mind. Whether win or loss, I will decide pass or failure. Bonus points for volunteering first." He grinned.

No one offered themselves up. Jayke had experience working in small groups. It'd take two of the same mindset to jump on an opportunity like this so fast. He glanced at Oz, but like Jayke, he was looking around to see who'd take him up on his offer.

Murmurs throughout the crowd.

"Born of the mind? What exactly did he mean by that?" A sibilant voice snaked softly nearby.

"A mental mage perhaps." Another responded. They were a pair.

"Volunteering might be a good idea. Pass or fail, we'll be out of there fast. I don't deal well with stress." A voice nervously intoned.

"Idiot, we're gonna be right there in the circle once it's our turn. You're telling me that now?" His partner responded. "We'll wait and see. Someone's bound to do it."

A minute passed and Hucobb was content to stare at the crowd, seeming as if he had all day. For all Jayke knew, he did. It was enough time for some to come to decisions. Jayke and Oz looked to be on the same wavelength which was good, both content to wait and observe.

A strong voice rose higher than the rest. "We won't mind being first." The voice belonged to a lithe figure, a woman. A dark robe trailed the floor behind her and Jayke made out no other features covered as she was in a hood. To her side, her partner, someone of similar attire and form.

Hucobb rose an eyebrow. "Elves, here?" He hummed, somewhat amused. "Very well, step into the circle. I wasn't expecting anyone to volunteer." He said casually as they approached.

The two bowed semi-deeply and entered the circle. Hucobb tapped his staff and a thin bright line traversed the outskirts of the clearing, marking the arena. It separated the crowd from those within, circling the arena twice until the light flashed and a transparent field in the shape of a bubble formed.

Jayke paid close attention to the two participants. He hadn't missed what Hucobb called them. Elves. A race of fantasy. From books and make-believe. A race paired with dwarves and orcs and gnomes and other such beings. One that fell within the storytelling realm of dragons and witches and quests and legends.

A magical race.

Hucobb approached them. "Your goal is to impress me. Dying, obviously, will not accomplish that." He chuckled, meeting the unperturbed stare of the two unflinchingly. "Your match shall begin the moment I leave the ring." He turned to everyone else. "Unless otherwise stated, this will be how this portion of the test will be conducted."

Then he stepped out of the ring, passing through the transparent bubble of force.

A creature of shadow and fire engulfed a quarter of the ring. It erupted into being like the birth of a phoenix. It lit up the dour cavern and its wooshing screams were very much real. Anguished and damned, fire curled up and down its body like skin. Its mouth yawned terribly and fire-shadow dripped from its maw.

"Gods above!" Someone screamed, stepping back.

"Seven hells!" A burly voice startled. "What is that thing? A shadow fire elemental?"

"Gods that heat!" Someone shielded their face.

The heat was palpable. A few of those closest to the ring stepped back from the blazing heat. A variety of curses were thrown out, referencing a number of gods. Shock ran through the audience. Speculation and wonder.

Jayke was one of those who were cursing. Expletives found their way from his mouth. "What the hell is that?"

"An elemental." Oz voiced over the sound of the battle.

"What's the proctor thinking siccing that on those two?" Someone yelled over the fire. "Is this some kind of joke?"

"Doesn't look like it." Someone answered back. "Look they're beating it back!"

It jerked back painfully as shards of ice assaulted its face. A chunk of cold ice impacted its body heavily. It threw its arms in a wave and fire exploded forth, only to break upon a shield like a wave upon the shore. The impact of the fire, and the force behind the move threw the robes of the participants back.

Both elves were holding wands. To their credit, neither seemed inconvenienced. They were unfazed. Jayke observed them through the craning heads of the crowd. He spotted only the lower half of their faces, whispering words as cold lights gathered around their wands. Between the fire-creature and cracking ice, he couldn't make out their voices.

A pillar of ice rose up to defend against the flames in a more permanent manner It absorbed the impact from a blazing ball of flame. From it, shards of sharply pointed ice exploded outward like shrapnel, drawing bloody fire from their opponent. It raged and retaliated with ever-increasing heat. The ring filled minutely with water, the result of melting magical attacks, hissing where their opponent came in contact with it but not altogether evaporating.

When the floor was flooded in enough of it, a spear of water formed of it solidified into ice and pierced the creature's midsection. The creature died.

Hucobb clapped, directing the elves to the side. "Most impressive. You two; pass." He looked around and his eyes glinted. "Now who's next?"

They had gotten through half of the groups so far. Hucobb had been regarding all those who entered. A decent amount of those who entered were led away, actually. After a short conversation with the proctor.

"Must be non-combat Classes." Someone mentioned idly. "Not all magic is suited for these kinds of tests."

Oz was staring at Jayke but he didn't care.

Jayke was mutely in awe at the displays of magic. There were many who openly speculated in the crowd, often freely conversing with each other. Of course, most expected their conversations to be isolated. Jayke understood all of the conversations taking place around him. Mostly, people enjoyed narrowing down possible Skills that might explain a particular performance.

Most of that was directed towards Hucobb, however. Those that had taken the test were directed to another section of the arena, so the exact nature of their opponent was unclear. In fact, for everyone so far it had varied greatly. No one was really sure what the proctor employed to determine their opponents, or even summon them into existence.

"It's no use speculating. There are too many variations of Skills and Classes for anyone of us to narrow it down." Oz sighed, overhearing some of the talks as Jayke did.

The majority of the conversations were in Common. It was the same language Oz had been speaking. Most of the crowd seemed to at least recognize it too.

"Personally, [Summoner] seemed like a viable guess." Jayke shrugged, there did indeed seem to be a wide variety of things summoned to the ring. The Class was only as familiar as the word that described it. If anything described Hucobb so far, it was that; someone who summoned.

"It is possible but pointless speculating." Oz replied. "Nevertheless, we should not let ourselves be as complacent as those two." The blue man gestured to the two currently in the ring. He had been carefully watching each match while others provided commentary around them.

A group of metal constructs closed the distance between both of them and proceeded to break bones. They were statues, frozen in expression save for their violent motions. Polished and shiny, stainless steel that shouldn't have moved with flexibility presented.

The first mage had tried his magic and failed. Brackish water impacted the group of constructs without effect. The purple orb of lightning that followed was more impact than electricity and managed to down a single one of their number. The rest descended on him, beating him into the ground.

The second's magic was less useless but slow acting. A spray of acid melted them partially, but the constructs were unerring. He was downed moments after with the snap of bone.

Jayke looked away. It was the tenth group to fail. He glanced at Oz. "What is your magic?"

Oz rose an eyebrow.

"To better prepare, we should be aware of each other's capabilities." Jayke nodded at the two being dragged away. "If the first had stalled for the second they may have won."

Oz regarded Jayke and answered. "My magic is quite versatile, suited to any situation. I should have a tool for most opponents." He turned to Jayke. "And yours?"

"Protection," Jayke said. "I can cover us while you work your magic then." He grimaced. "I've had it up to here with getting beat up and bloodied." He tracked the two being dragged away.

"Hm." Oz hummed. "A fortunate pairing then. Protecting myself is normally at the cost of attacking my enemy."

Hucobb called for the next pair and an unassuming fair-skinned humanoid stepped forward. His partner was a dwei woman, one of the very few present. Jayke hadn't seen her at first, but he had been getting better at recognizing their natural nature.

The former walked into the center of the ring wordlessly, without trepidation as most had been doing so far. The dwei woman was similarly unfazed and looked ready for danger.

Hucobb began the test without pretense, simply stepping out of the ring.

It was the first time the creature came from below. The dwei woman stepped quickly aside and the gaping maw that erupted from the stone was something like a creature that Jayke recognized. It looked shockingly like a Great Sand Worm, but this one was plated in stone. It ripped across the floor and destroyed the even grounds of the ring.

The fair-skinned man had no features that immediately discounted him as a human, but Jayke had spotted him earlier, his facial features and musculature were indeed not human. Something about them was simply different. Now, his arms and body glowed with grey-green runes. His body lit up in the color but his face remained focused.

The dwei woman backflipped and dodged the worm right as it exploded from the rock. Its body crested and a nasty chalkboard noise screeched into the cavern. The dwei had formed a blade of sand, quickly sawing a section of the stone worm's body off. She dodged again, if she kept it up-

A lance of light pierced the creature's head, slamming the entire body downward and arresting its entire arcing momentum. The magic blinded everyone in its brilliance.

The worm lay motionless once sight returned. Dead.

Jayke's head snapped to the other participant, but his body's light was fading already. His arm was outstretched and he lowered it. The audience went quiet. That was one of the nastier opponents Jayke had seen and it had been handled in an instant.

Hucobb acted as if nothing of the ordinary happened. He called out, "Next?"

Jayke caught Oz's glance. "Are you ready?" He asked Jayke.

"As ready as I'll ever be," Jayke responded.

They stood up and made their way to the ring. When they stepped through the transparent forcefield Jayke felt a perceptible difference between his shields and the one erected for the arena. He passed through it effortlessly. It was as if he had an intuitive sense of the barrier. It felt brute force and less elegant, unstructured compared to his own. Like a flat wall compared to a curved, purposed shield. Yet powerful despite that, by sheer power alone.

As soon as they passed the forcefield Oz stopped moving, preferring the very edge of the arena. Likewise, Jayke stood beside him. The rules by this point were hammered in by example. The moment Hucobb left the circle the battle would begin.

Hucobb regarded both of them.

He stepped outside.

Jayke expected to adapt to whatever appeared. Instead, his eyes widened and he threw up a shield immediately. A grey-blue shield formed just as heavy projectiles shattered on its surface. The impact was jarring.

Oz blinked, flinching backward. "What is that?"

Like all the opponents so far, it had appeared the same way Hucobb had conjured his staff. It was simply as if it had been there from the very start. Previously, none had attacked as swiftly as this one.

Jayke eyed the thing. The audience burst into murmurs and even Hucobb seemed more invested than usual. It was a quadruped covered in armor. A lumbering creature that misleadingly looked slow. The truth of the matter was these creatures could demolish an enforced wall given enough time. They shot off portions of their body at extremely high velocity, with enough force to rip through even the reinforced turret defenses. Their defense became their offense. He had observed them thousands of times.

"How the hell is this thing here?" An edge to his voice. He stared at his hands and the shield he held up. He could never have stood up to one of these in the flesh before. He answered Oz. "It shoots off its armor, extremely high velocity. It'll rip apart any part of you it hits."

"You can withstand its blows for a time?" Oz was crouched and hovering his hands in front of him. What could only be described as a puddle formed below his palms. Except it quivered, then jiggled. Then moved. It looked like grey slop.

"Maybe." Jayke responded grimly.

Their opponent roared and for a moment Jayke was back in the facility. He struck the notion from his mind. What had he called these? What dumb name had he given them? Shieldshots, he recalled. Many of the corrupted creatures from back in the day he had given uncreative monikers. The shieldshots were not so dangerous individually, at least to the facility's defenses, it was the security risk they presented that made them priority threats. They were one of the few that if determined could create a breach. Usually, they were handled easily.

Although exposed to them and trapped as they were, it was a completely different story.

The shieldshot stepped toward them with a step as heavy as a tank. It cracked the floor beneath it in a way no creature should by weight alone. Then it flexed and a huge chunk of its side exploded and struck the shield that Jayke had been supplying revealing muscle beneath the armor. Jayke actually felt a physical force transmit through his shield and he took a step back.

"What is its armor? You know this creature?" Oz said hurriedly, he was inspecting the creature through the shield, his attention split between Jayke's magic and the opponent's form.

"Rock mostly." Jayke had observed the ejected portions of the armor before. Their composition was just a combination of local mineral deposits. He eyed the quivering jello that slid slowly towards the shieldshot. "That's your magic?" Jayke's voice was tense, doubtful.

"Rock? That is good news." Oz spoke calmly. "Yes, so long as your magic holds, mine will do its job." He said simply. He stared at the grey-blue shield that surrounded them both tightly. He regarded it with interest but turned his attention to his own magic that approached the shieldshot even now.

Jayke observed the small quivering mass of jello and wondered exactly what it was supposed to do. Oz hummed something and Jayke tuned in between watching the shieldshot's approach. If this shieldshot had put any more power in its flexion Jayke would've died instantly. This one was small in comparison, but the things got as large as elephants, maybe larger, and could launch artillery high into the sky.

Oz was mumbling and Jayke listened in, surprised.

"Break and dissolve, reduce and diffuse, melt and liquefy. [Acidic Infusion]." Oz chanted, some power in the words, a focus. He had read about that in The Feel Of Magic. Chanting to focus the mana of a spell. The blue man stared intently at his little jiggling jello and it glowed, something about its nature fundamentally changing.

The ground below it sizzled ominously and the shieldshot's attention was attracted to the sound. A piece of armor shot viscously at the jello and it exploded in a splatter of grey goo. Almost as fast as it dispersed it came back with a green glow no longer grey, carving grooves in the rock where its mass crossed to gather into its original form.

The shieldshot launched a huge swath of its armor at the jello, somewhere in the process the jello had gotten larger, now the size of a large dog. The rock armor smashed into the jello, but only formed a crater and was quickly absorbed.

It hadn't mattered much with the facility defenses but the shieldshot gained immense speed once its armor was shredded. Muscles normally dedicated to lugging weight became free, and bursts of incredible speed became available. It could sprint across a short distance as fast as the armor it launched. Jayke had never observed them in that form, the highly capable targeting system of the facility's point defense meant they died the moment their armor was shed.

Jayke kept his shield strong, expecting the worse from the creature now that more of its armor was gone.

Oz hummed and chanted and the focus of his magic only became larger and larger. Soon it was the size of a car, half the size of the shieldshot which began to dislodge all of its armor. All of its projectiles were absorbed and dissolved, adding to the mass of the acidic jello creature that Oz commanded.

Jayke eyed both of them. His role wasn't flashy or central, but he was acutely aware of the importance of a good defensible position. A lapse in his judgment could be fatal.

It roared deeply at the acidic jello, hissing when its swipe against it netted it nothing but burned skin. It narrowed its eyes and rolled forward, peeling the rock right off the ground and forming up its entire armor in a single second. Jayke blinked, he had never seen that before. It eyed the slow jello and steered clear from its path, instead eyeing Jayke and Oz opposite the arena.

"Looks like it's noticed us again," Jayke remarked.

"A matter of attrition then. My slime will only continue to grow." Oz replied cooly. "Given enough time it will have nowhere to go." The man seemed sure of himself.

Slime was more fitting than jello Jayke admitted. He adopted the term quickly.

"Can you keep the slime between it and us? We'll take cover behind it." Jayke said quickly. He wasn't keen on figuring out what won between the shieldshot and his shield.

"Yes." Oz replied, somewhat strained.

"Follow me then." Wordlessly, Jayke began moving. The glowing shield was anchored to him and thus moved in tandem. Oz followed as their position favored them more and more.

The shieldshot growled in a deep bass when its path was cut off by the slime. It ejected armor at Jayke's shield but the pieces were at bad angles and Jayke directed them off to the side. His shield, even correctly angled and with a bad ejection from the opponent, still reverberated with the impact of pure mass alone. The ejected pieces of armor were solid chunks of rock inches thick, each one was sorely felt.

The slime was inevitable. Oz observed it quietly. "The battle is over now."

The shieldshot's attention was on the slime now, it couldn't have been ignored much longer. Large pieces of rock ripped through the slime, but none removed enough of its large volume to splatter the entirety of it. The shieldshot's death throes were more painful than any he had heard before as it was dissolved alive, rolling across the floor to refresh its armor only for it to liquefy like the rest of its body.

Jayke dropped his shield, straightening once the thing died. Oz relaxed and the slime dissipated.

Hucobb announced the results. "Pass." He said, directing them both to the side.

Jayke and Oz stepped outside the arena and joined the rest of those who passed.

Once they arrived they managed to look back at the arena and see the havoc they wrought. Between the shieldshot and Oz's slime the floor of the ring was burned, dissolved, and ruined.

Hucobb tapped his staff and it began to repair itself to the smooth stone that it once was before he called for the next participants.

The people around them, the ones who passed, gossiped.

"I've never seen a creature like that before." Someone remarked.

"No surprise, people travel far and wide for the Coterie's test. " A voice responded. With that, a lot of the crowd regarded both Jayke and Oz quietly. "There's bound to be something you don't recognize."

Someone noticed Jayke's confused gaze. He addressed him. "Every opponent so far is from memory. It must be some kind of Skill or advanced magic." The female lizard humanoid looked toward Hucobb. "I wonder what his Class is to command something like that?"

"Born of the mind, remember?" Someone offered.

Oz glanced at Jayke. "You've fought similar before?" He asked. "You knew its capabilities."

"I've encountered worse than that. I've never fought it head-on like this." Jayke said quietly. There were Skills or magic that could bring back memories? He shivered at the corrupted abominations he recalled in his mind. Any one of them might've been worse than a shieldshot.

Oz noticed his faraway gaze. "Never head-on?" He asked.

"I've always killed them from afar. Those things could breach... castle walls given enough time. You had to kill them or everything was compromised." He improvised.

"With your magic?" Oz said confused.

"My other one," Jayke responded, technically it wasn't lying.

He supposed a little bit of code and magic did contribute to the deaths of thousands of beings over the course of the year he spent alone. Shieldshots among them.

There were enough people demonstrating some skill in separate magics that admitting to having knowing two wasn't odd.

Jayke addressed Oz. "What was that magic of yours? It was different than most." Jayke asked, genuinely curious. With the exception of a few others, most magics were flashy and obvious. Oz's was one of the few that were not immediately so.

"Slime magic," He responded, a quiet passion in his voice. "Very niche." He said. "But with enough practice and diligence, it can be one of the most adaptable forms of magic in existence."

Jayke chuckled. "I detect some amount of pride there."

"Because there is." He stated simply. The blue man turned to regard Jayke. "And yours? I've never seen a shield like that. That was different from a pure mana shield."

The fact that Jayke wasn't even sure what a mana shield was did not show itself on his face. He smiled easily. "Shields and barriers. Right now, that's my forte." Wards were still out of the question.

"What's the difference?" Oz said confused.

"Trust me, that took me a while to figure out too." Jayke laughed. "But effectively, not much." He shrugged. Jayke didn't feel like expanding upon the definitions.

They waited for the rest of the crowd to get tested.

His attention was on each individual as they cast their magic. His goal was for context, and he wondered exactly what level some of his peers were. The books he read were indeed informational but they didn't do real magic justice. Here he could observe people working miracles, things that shouldn't be possible.

The commentary among the crowd gave Jayke some insight into social norms. People liked to speculate on Skills and Classes. Some made a game of guessing Levels.

It seemed that directly asking someone's Level, Skills, or Classes, was considered rude. Although, that norm seemed challenged by a handful of folks who didn't seem to particularly care.

An arrogant individual addressed everyone as soon as his opponent - a fire breathing snake - was defeated. He looked tribal, with war paint that covered a bare chest. His facial features were wolf-like and feral.

"Weak [Mages]." His voice carried, seeding anger in the crowd. "Soft like children. Barely any of your number have seen true combat. I doubt half of you have met your first milestone." His words were a growl as he stared people down.

His eyes landed on the two elves, the fair-skinned man, and a handful of others.

"I am Level 10 asshole." A voice offered offhandedly, peeved.

The wolfman's eyes tracked the voice and examined the speaker. "And yet you do not know true combat. You reek of someone coddled to their first milestone."

The dwei woman from earlier, the fair-skinned man's partner interjected herself. "No need to start conflict dog."

The word came viciously, like a cut aimed at an artery. Yet the wolfman paid the dwei woman no attention. "I have no problems with the people of the Desert Blur. The dwei fight as if their lives depend on it every day in the sand." He sneered at the rest. "My problem lies in those unfit and unexperienced in the nature of the world."

The dwei woman did not expect her jibe to slide off the wolfman so easily. Nor was she prepared for the wolfman to completely disregard her taunt and return it with respect. She faltered.

"Many of us come here seeking to gain that worldliness," Oz spoke into the lull. His voice was calm and scholarly, but behind it, there was something heavier.

Jayke startled at his companion suddenly provoking the man. Oz's gaze was steadfast and narrow. He didn't seem like the type to let disrespect go unanswered. Jayke was caught wondering whether or not he could step quietly away. He wasn't one for needless confrontation.

The wolfman scoffed and turned, pausing. He regarded Oz cooly. "You at least, though naive, are ready for the world." His sharp canine gaze shifted to Jayke and he swore the man's nose twitched. "And him, he's seen more monsters than most here."

Jayke caught a handful of people turning their attention to him. Oz among them. Jayke frowned, it might have been true but how could he have known? He crossed his arms, watching the wolfman more intently. He didn't appreciate the attention brought to him.

"And how do you know that?" Her voice was like a wind chime, but carried weight as heavy as Oz's. It was the elf. One of them. Though the other did not stand far. "It is the choice of the proctor to determine who may join the Coterie. No one else."

"[Scent of Prey]. It is a Skill, and the scent exudes strongly from many here." He snarled, causing a handful of people nearby to flinch. "I only speak because they waste our time." He spoke in a manner than suggested the elves were excluded. "They will not make it through these tests, and if they do, neither will they survive a trek to a main branch."

His nose twitched and he pointed at the arena.

"Them." A woman and man stood in the ring. Hucobb had not stopped conducting the tests, even as those who passed talked and gossiped. The two currently within the ring were of the same race, they looked like living crystals. Symmetry in motion. "My [Scent of Prey] detects nothing. Likely, they will destroy their opponent." He said simply.

The crowd watched quietly as what the wolfman said came to pass. The crystal beings formed crystal pillars that surrounded the lumbering giant that appeared. Thereon, its movements were limited. It was caged. That done, it was easily decapitated.

The crystal folk made their way over.

He spoke to the crowd. "You see now? Many here are outclassed and will do the rest a favor if they simply leave. There is no shame in returning stronger." He growled.

Oz spoke. "Anyone may attempt these tests. Those here know the risks associated with testing for the Coterie." The wolfman glanced at Oz and snarled.

Jayke certainly did not know that. Although he accepted it the moment he heard, the possibility of death had been a constant for a while now, it changed nothing.

The fair-skinned man joined the conversation. His voice was quiet but brimming with presence. "Let them test, wolf. It changes not your outcome. Our proctor has even warned that the number he is permitted to take may not even fill."

"The weak do not deserve the chance." The wolfman snapped.

To his ears, Jayke's own voice sounded the most normal among them, but idly he wondered if he sounded otherworldly. Back when social interaction was a constant in his life, he was particularly skilled in deescalation. He wondered aloud. "I wonder what the next test is. He said he was going to keep testing us until our numbers dwindled or until he was impressed."

Oz glanced at Jayke with a raised eyebrow, an acutely human expression. The two elves whispered to each other. The dwei and fair-skinned man stepped away and gave up the conversation. Others detached from the conflict and speculated amongst themselves.

"We might be matched off to duel each other. I heard last year that was the format." Someone speculated.

"Spell demonstrations maybe?" Another spoke. "Demonstrating mastery isn't unheard of."

The crowd seemed to forget the tension in the air, realizing that Hucobb had conducted the last match. The last two people were sent off with those that had failed. They returned to the building above ground. The number of participants had effectively dwindled to a little over a third of those originally present.

The proctor then addressed those that were left.

"Good, if you've made it this far then I've personally deemed you minimally equipped to survive." He regarded everyone with a weighty gaze. His scrutiny held for each individual briefly before he began again. "This is important because the next portion of the test stresses that aspect heavily. That is, survival."

He slammed his staff hard into the ground. A shockwave nearly knocked everyone down to their feet.

He stared over the heads of the crowd. "On the other side, there is a magical circle much like the one your matches were just conducted in." Jayke was one of the first to turn around. A yawning cave mouth had appeared behind them. Quickly, others followed suit. "If you've done your research you'll be familiar with the Underways. You will be crossing them in order to get to the finish line. That line, of course, being a magical circle similar to this one. Reach it by the end of the day and you may consider yourself passed for this portion of the test."

New Quest: [Test Underway] (Unusual)

The test to determine those who qualify to be welcomed into the Practitioner's Coterie is underway! For this portion of the test, you've been tasked with reaching the magic circle that lies somewhere through the section of the Underways revealed to you. Beware the creatures lurking within the dark.

Rewards: Quest, EXP

Jayke found people staring at their hands, nodding, looking blankly forward. The System, it seemed, truly was different for everyone. And it looked like everyone got the same Quest.

Hucobb spoke, "Bonus points for getting there early." The statement served as a starting pistol's firing, spurring people into motion.

Some people went sprinting into the yawning darkness. Others began strolling forward. Oz walked forward with them and Jayke joined him. While some stuck to their partners a number of people moved forward alone. Those who had sprinted disappeared into the darkness, perhaps having some method to see in the dark. Others did not have the luxury.

Lights sprung up the moment it was necessary.

Pale light bathed the cavern walls to reveal sheer cliffs and deadly drops. The blob of people he found himself with skittered away from the edges of the cliffs they suddenly found themselves upon. Without the light, darkness would've encroached and hundred-meter drops would be only steps away.

A loud crumbling resounded heavily across the vast expanse of the cavern. Jayke turned around and found the entrance gone. A solid wall of cavernous stone blocked whatever illusion of retreat anyone had harbored. A handful of people called out weakly.

"Uhh, hello?" A panicked individual rapped on the wall. The noise echoed dismally across the cavern.

"Did we just get locked in here?" Someone said in disbelief.

Jayke took stock of the situation. He didn't know how to produce light with his magic, aside from using the ambient magic from his [Protective Magic] or [Code Magic] so that meant he'd need to stick close to the others.

Further ahead he spotted the two elves walking, blue lights were fixed above their shoulders. The wolfman walked ahead of them while the dwei woman and fair-skinned man trailed behind each with their own light fixtures. Not far behind them the two crystal beings that were last to complete their match walked unbothered by their dim surroundings.

Oz held a ball of glowing slime and Jayke turned to him. "Mind if I stick with you?"

"By all means." He responded. "Your shields may be more useful here than my magic, however."

Jayke frowned, something ominous in his statement. "What exactly are the Underways?"

His face was bathed in the gloomy light. "For the purposes of this test, they may as well be hell." He grimaced. "Traversing them blind without a dedicated [Navigator], [Explorer], or [Guide]. The notion is vain. Finding a magical circle without even a lead? Only more so."

Jayke's attention turned to the caves. "Great."