When the light and glow of the teleportation array cleared, we found ourselves alone on top of a hill in what appeared to be an outdoor space. Blue sky was above our heads, and dark green verdant grass was beneath my boots, soft and with the slight give I expected. A few hundred feet away at the bottom of the hill was a small patch of forest. Further off into the distance, I saw a small lake of some kind, clear blue and with a mirror-like surface.

The sheer scope required to create such a spell was almost unfathomable, and I suspected it involved several mages working in concert, and more mana than most people could ever hope to reach. Of course, considering the near-limitless power of the leylines beneath the Academy, I doubted the mages had done anything more than simply direct its energy into the spell. But there was something wrong with this place, and after a minute, I realized what it was.

Although the sky was bright blue and a light shone down on us, there was no sun or clouds above our heads. Listening carefully, I heard nothing. Ordinally, you could listen to the wind gently blowing, grass rustling underfoot, and animals' sounds in the distance. But as I stood and listened, I could hear only the sounds of my own breathing.

It seems that this spatial distortion was more akin to a painting than a faithful recreation of the natural world. It looked good on the surface, but in truth, it was a pale imitation, limited in scope and depth.

"This place...it's incredible," Leon said breathlessly, slowly scanning the horizon.

Sophia scoffed, shaking her head and replying, "It's pretty, but I think we should focus on the task at hand. What's our next move?"

Leon looked to me and asked, "Vayne, what do you know about challenges like this?"

I took a moment to think before replying, "Past years survival challenges usually require teams to complete a trial of some kind, while staying alive. Making their way to a destination, eliminating certain beasts, or finding specific items all have been used. The masters leave food and water here, but it's often poisonous if prepared improperly. There are almost always dangerous constructs seeded throughout that we need to watch out for and defend ourselves against. And of course, there are other teams here as well."

"Other teams?" Simon asked with a frown.

"Yes. The other challenges so far were limited to just our team, but considering the size of this place, they must have every single apprentice in here. And that opens us up to a much more serious threat than hunger, thirst, or replicated beasts."

"The other apprentices attacking us," Amelia stated, her hand unconsciously lowering to the hilt on her hip.

"Exactly. Attacking, injuring, or otherwise causing problems for other teams in-between challenges is against the rules, but we are fair game while we are in this place. Any teams that are completely disabled during survival challenges are disqualified from the rest of the tournament. It's not uncommon for more combat-oriented teams to use this opportunity to eliminate some of the competition."

"Seems unfair," Simon commented with a frown.

"Maybe, but it also makes sense. Some teams likely focus on combative skills, so they need to make sure the more academic apprentices are out of the way. There's plenty of incentive to pick fights whenever they can." Sophia noted a mixture of annoyance and understanding in her eyes.

"Regardless of their motives, we need to take that risk into consideration. What would you recommend, Vayne?" Leon asked quietly, not looking at me but instead scanning the horizon. My words had set all of us on edge, and clearly, Leon was worried about an attack.

"We should make for that forest down the slope," I said, pointing to the trees with one hand.

Leon and the others looked where I indicated, and I continued, "When we get there, I can set up a defensive spell to make us a shelter. Our safest course of action would be to gather food and water and make camp for the night. I am still not sure what the goal of being here is yet, but either way, we need more information first."

Nodding slowly, Leon turned to the rest of us before drawing his bow with a severe expression.

"Alright, let's get moving. The sooner we get some cover around us, the better."

Moving at a steady jog, we made our way down the hill we had landed on towards the small forest cover. As we ran, I used my mana senses to scan for anyone or anything nearby. Thankfully, I found nothing, and we got to the treeline without incident. After around fifteen minutes, we found a small clearing in the forest, barely twenty feet across. Crouching in the undergrowth, Leon spoke in a quiet whisper.

"Priority is food and water. Sophia, take Simon and Amelia to retrieve water and wood. We will need enough to keep embers burning for most of the night. Magic can keep us warm and dry, but I'd rather have backup plans just in case. Vayne and I will look for food. We'll meet back here in an hour, okay?"

"Should we be splitting up?" Amelia asked quietly, biting her lip.

"Big groups attract attention, and we need to get supplies as fast as possible. If we split up, we can hopefully get everything done in half the time. If you run into trouble, retreat using our defensive formation and call us using your bracelets. But don't use them unless you have to, and avoid any magic. I don't want another team sensing our mana." Leon ordered with a focused look on his face.

Nodding, I watched as the three of them disappeared into the brush, wincing at the noise they made. Although it was likely that no ordinary person had my level of hearing

Leon grabbed my shoulder, shaking me from my thoughts, and gave a small grin, saying, "She'll be fine, Vayne. Let's get moving. The sooner we find food, the sooner we can regroup with the others."

Falling silent, Leon and I moved slowly through the forest, keeping low to the ground. I kept one hand on my weapon's hilt, ready to draw it in case of a fight. If it came down to it, I would prefer to use my sword-staff and explain it later than lose and be disqualified.

Pausing by a small plant with reddish berries, Leon grabbed one in his gloved hands. Squeezing it, he held the fruit up to his nose and carefully smelt, before nodding slowly. Reaching back, he pulled out a small pouch and began cutting off the plant branches, placing it into the bag. After a second, I moved forward and started filling my own pack, following Leon's lead.

Moving on, Leon again paused, this time by a thick tree with dozens of mushrooms clustered around its base. It seems his survival knowledge was coming in handy, and if we were not in such a tense situation, I might ask him to explain what he knew. It could not hurt to know what was safe to each and what was poisonous in the wilds.

"This is a good start, but we need more than just berries and mushrooms if we want to survive. Do you know anything else that might help?" Leon whispered.

"Sometimes, they leave caches inside these spaces, hidden under the ground or with spells. I can sense mana well enough that I might be able to track one down." I replied.

Leon was silent for several minutes, before nodding slowly.

"See if you can sense any nearby. Ideally, I want us to have enough food and water to last several days, but we can ration if we don't get lucky."

I closed my eyes, casting out my senses as far as I could withstand. That was a distance measured in hundreds of feet, far enough that little escaped my notice. Unfortunately, the sheer scope of mana funneled to keep this space open was almost deafening, and it dulled my ability to sense smaller volumes of energy. It reminded me of trying to hear a single conversation in a crowded room.

Opening my eyes, I looked to Leon and shook my head, causing him to scowl.

"Damn. Alright, it was worth a try, at least. Let's head back and regroup with the others."

As we crept backward, tracing our steps, I detected a slight rustling behind us. Leon heard the same thing, and we both stopped, his hand immediately retrieving an arrow and laying it on the string.

For several minutes, we did not move, keeping our breathing shallow and listening carefully. When ten minutes had passed without incident, I almost thought that whatever we heard had left.

Almost as soon as I thought that, a string shot down from above our head, wrapping around my ankle. I swore under my breath, drawing the short sword Leon had purchased me and slashing down at the cord. The blade skittered off the cable, sparks flying where metal struck metal, and my stomach turned as I was wrenched into the air, my knee complaining at the sudden force applied to the joint.

Above me, a glittering metallic spider, the size of a medium-sized dog stared down at me, glistening onyx gemstones for eyes and clawed legs reaching out at me. I bit down a scream, knowing it was damn near suicidal to make such a noise in the quiet forest's depths. Still, as I watched the razor-sharp blades lash out towards my skin, it was difficult to keep calm.

Suddenly, an arrow slammed into the monsters head, shattering several of the gemstones and sending it staggering. A moment later, a second arrow hit home at nearly the same place, driving halfway into the construct's head and parting the metal of its skull. Despite the damage, it was silent, the only sound being the clicking of metal on wood. Turning its attention to Leon, I felt the cable around my leg loosen, and the spider leaped onto the forest floor below.

Before gravity could drag me to the ground, I reached out and grabbed onto a nearby branch, pulling myself onto it with my free hand. Below, the spider was carefully approaching Leon, who had another arrow ready to fire. I suspected he could handle himself, but I still knew I needed to try and help him, however possible.

I almost felt, rather than heard the second spider behind me, and whirling with unnatural speed, I ducked under its attack, feeling metallic fangs pinch shut above my head. I pushed back, giving myself several feet of space. The branch under my feet swayed precariously, and I automatically adjusted my balance, feeling my right knee ache from the sudden movement.

Readjusting my grip, I took several deep breaths, examining the construct while I had the chance. It was lightly armored, with separated plates similar to the chitinous shell of most insects. The head was lightly armored, as were the gaps in-between sections of its body, and I knew that was the best place to strike.

As if sensing my intent, the spider suddenly leaped, claws ready to tear me open. Defying my instincts to move backward, which would have likely brought me too far out onto the branch, I stepped forward, cutting off its jump and bringing my sword up. I was far less skilled with the blade than my staff, but my improved reflexes and coordination let my strike hit true, driving into the plates between head and thorax.

My blade penetrated the softer, less armored interior of the construct, and I heard a grinding of metal as the delicate internal workings were damaged. Sharped legs flailed in an attempt to carve my comparatively softer flesh, but I pushed hard, throwing the machine onto the ground a dozen feet below, my blade exiting its body and remaining in my firm grip.

Crashing to the ground below with a dull thud, I noticed two legs had been damaged from the awkward landing. Standing, it looked back up at me, seemingly determining that I was too dangerous to attack while in a damaged state. Instead, it turned and found Leon, who was still engaged with its sibling.

The head of that spider was a mess of arrows, to the point that I was shocked it was still functional. If left to his own devices, I was sure Leon could finish off the machine without any trouble. But that second construct could cause problems if it was allowed to join its ally.

Making my decision, I jumped from the tree branch, aiming to land on top of the one I had already damaged. Hitting it hard, I drove my blade down at an angle, aiming at the same point I had already attacked. My ankles protested against the sudden deceleration, and I winced but still felt my sword slice deep into the machine again.

This time, it froze sharply, before stumbling to one side under my weight and the force from my landing. I pulled the blade to one side with a grunt, feeling it stop for a moment before wrenching free with a harsh grinding sound. Half jumping and half falling, I landed on the ground and staggered to my feet as the spider turned to me. Its head hung from its body with only a few cords keeping it attached, and it moved far more slowly than before, its steps stuttering.

Before it could decide to try and attack me a third time, a large rock slammed into its head from above, as Leon finished off the machine. He looked up at me, sweat dripping from his head as he gasped for breath.

"You okay, Vayne?" Leon asked after a minute, scanning my appearance.

I nodded quickly, trying to appear frantic and fearful as I replied, "Yes, sir. Thanks to you."

Looking down at the machine with its head nearly torn from its body, Leon raised an eyebrow at me. I smiled in an embarrassed tone, holding up my sword and continuing, "I got lucky, sir. I believe I now owe you twice for this blade."

It was a lie, and I knew I had shown a bit too much combat skills, though I still made sure to stick with the sword Leon gave me instead of my preferred weapon and fighting style. It was a mistake on my part, but I knew I had to defend myself and help Leon.

I gave an exaggerated gasp before kneeling onto the ground and rubbing my knee to cut off any questions.

"I think that creature might have injured my knee. Nothing serious, but I certainly hope we do not encounter any more on the way back." I said, giving my voice a strained inflection as if I was holding back pain. In truth, it did hurt, but I had experienced far worse in the last year.

Leon's curious expression cleared, and he nodded, responding, "I'm sorry you were injured, Vayne. It was my mistake, having us split up like that. Let's head back and regroup with the others."

Kneeling, Leon retrieved his arrows from one of the spiders' head, examining them for damage. I paused next to one of the bodies before opening my pack and pushing the damaged construct inside. When Leon raised an eyebrow, I shrugged and said, "It's best if we have someone on watch, in case of attacks while the rest sleep. I might be able to learn something useful about disabling these things in the future if I study them now."

What I did not vocalize was the worry I felt creeping down my spine. If this was what we encountered after barely an hour in this place, how could we survive the full trial?