I woke up to the sound of the temple bells ringing.
Not softly. Not gently.
Loud. Deep. Echoing through stone like the entire world was being called to attention.
For a second, I just lay there, staring at the ceiling, heart already racing.
Then it hit me.
Today.
I shot up out of bed.
My first day as an acolyte of Cipher.
A grin spread across my face before I could stop it. This was it. This was everything I'd been waiting for—everything Arcana had never given me.
I scrambled across my small room, nearly tripping over a loose stone in the floor as I dug through my things.
"Where are they—"
I dropped to my knees and yanked open the closet.
There.
My robes.
Crumpled on the floor like they had no idea how important they were.
A sharp knock hit my door.
I froze for half a second—then rushed to grab the robes.
"I'll be there in a minute!" I called out.
I threw them on as fast as I could, barely paying attention, fingers fumbling with the ties. They didn't sit right, but there was no time to fix it.
Another knock.
"I said I'm coming!"
I rushed to the door and pulled it open.
Nikolai stood there.
Of course he did.
Calm. Composed. Already fully dressed like he had been awake for hours.
"Hey," he said, glancing me up and down.
There was a pause.
"You know your robes are on backwards, right?"
I blinked.
Looked down.
…He was right.
I let out a breath, half annoyed, half embarrassed, and quickly turned them around.
"Better?" I asked.
"Yes," he said simply.
I smirked. "Good enough."
There was a brief silence between us—not awkward, just… heavy.
Different.
We both felt it.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"For what?"
He gave me a look.
"Our first trial."
Right.
My grin came back instantly.
"Yeah," I said. "I can't wait for the Trial of Veiled Truths."
The words felt bigger when I said them out loud.
Real.
Dangerous.
"Then we should go," Nikolai said. "If we're late, we might not even be allowed inside."
"Not happening."
I stepped past him into the corridor.
"Come on."
We took off running.
The temple corridors stretched long and wide, carved from ancient stone that seemed to hum faintly beneath our feet. Other acolytes moved through the halls, some walking calmly, others rushing like we were.
We didn't slow down.
Couldn't.
"Slow down!" someone shouted as we passed.
"Or there'll be consequences!"
"Yeah, yeah!" I called back, not even turning around.
Nikolai didn't say anything—but he didn't slow down either.
That was all the confirmation I needed.
We rounded a corner hard, nearly colliding with a group of older acolytes. They stepped back just in time, muttering under their breath.
The bells were still ringing.
Louder now.
Closer.
We were running out of time.
"There!" Nikolai said.
The doors.
Massive. Towering. Carved with glowing runes that pulsed faintly along their surface.
They were already closing.
"Move!" I snapped.
We pushed harder, sprinting the last stretch.
The gap narrowed.
Too fast.
"Now!"
We slipped through just as the doors sealed shut behind us with a deep, echoing boom.
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Still.
I bent slightly, catching my breath, then straightened quickly, trying to look like we hadn't just sprinted our way in.
We moved quietly to the back of the chamber.
Dozens of acolytes stood before us.
More than I expected.
I scanned the room, looking for familiar faces.
Nothing.
No one.
Just Nikolai.
That's when it hit me.
"They didn't just pick from Arcana," I whispered.
"Of course not," he said. "They chose from everywhere."
Lucky us.
I turned my attention forward.
At the center of the chamber stood a priest—older, robed in deeper colors, his presence commanding without effort.
He was speaking.
I hadn't been listening.
I forced myself to focus.
"…you stand within the Temple of Cipher," he was saying. "Chosen not for what you are—but for what you may become."
The air felt heavier.
The walls—alive.
"…beyond these doors, reality will not behave as you expect. Truth will not reveal itself. It will be tested."
A faint hum spread beneath the floor.
The runes along the walls began to glow brighter and pulse
My chest tightened.
"…The first trial," the priest continued, "is the Labyrinth of Veiled Truths."
I swallowed.
This was real.
This was happening.
I glanced at Nikolai.
He was already watching the room, analyzing everything.
Of course he was.
I looked forward again.
Excitement and fear twisted together in my chest.
Good.
Let it.
Because whatever waited beyond this moment—
Was going to change everything.
And for the first time in my life—
I was exactly where I was supposed to be.