Kamine put her bag down on the bottom bunk, since Zoya seemed to have claimed the top with colorful blankets. She would unpack later.
“I’m heading off for dinner, and to find the bathing room.” She could use a hot meal, and a long bath.
“Oh,” Zoya deflated, but recovered quickly. “Have fun.”
Well, now Kamine felt bad for pushing her aside so quickly. It wasn’t Zoya’s fault. Kamine just didn’t like the attention. “Want to come?”
Zoya nodded vigorously. They readied to leave, but as Kamine stepped out their small nook, she could have sworn she saw a shadow of a man pass by, with a familiar bag slung on his shoulder.
“This is more tragic than I could have expected,” Janina whined dramatically from beside her, pushing the food around that she had only taken a few bites of. “Even in my poor village, we eat better than this.”
Kamine and Zoya had bumped into Janina as they made their way over to the dining hall. Janina had been ranting about how confusing the tunnels were, and how she almost gave up and made residence in a small alcove. She also had been complaining about how hungry she was. Kamine’s own stomach grumbled in response. She hadn’t eaten this morning because of her nerves.
Unfortunately for them all, the dining hall was nothing to rave about. The chicken and vegetables were dry and flavorless. The cook had said something about food for fuel-over-flavor. Kamine had to chug the metal-tasting water just to be able to stomach it.
The other participants entered slowly, but no one sat at their table—something Kamine couldn’t complain about. She didn’t have the energy to engage with more people. To be fair though, the room was small enough that one could hear everyone’s conversations, allowing her to at least gauge what this cohort would be like.
That’s how she heard a petite but muscled man confidently utter to those at his table, “I can’t wait to obliterate every falling rock.” He demonstrated by taking the ceramic mug in his hands, throwing it, and crushing it midair with his powers as it came down.
As show-offish as that display was, it did reveal he was powerful. Most could only manipulate where rocks, stones, and clay moved. To break them like he did, they would need to smash it against something else. The fact he could make an object explode on its own without any outside forces advertised true skill. However, Kamine wondered if he could perform the trickon larger rocks, as that was what he’d be up against during the Undertaking.
A woman who sat next to him brushed off chunks of the shattered cup from her clothes, similar to those Janina wore. Her tight pink braid had been practically sealed to her scalp with wax, highlighting her high cheekbones and sharp jaw. “While you do that,” her voice was cool and hard, “I’ll be going for the Heart.”
Kamine’s ear perked at that. Others had joined in, nodding their heads. A few of them clanged their mugs of water together and cheered.
“Not with me stopping you,” Janina mumbled from around the food in her mouth. A few pieces of chicken sputtered out as she spoke. Kamine tried not to cringe—not because of the chewed chicken that landed on her plate, but because Janina also was dead set on winning, like the others.
“Why do you care so much about the Heart?” Kamine asked, earnestly.
The room which had been noisy with the clatter of utensils and conversation came to a quiet pause. Kamine bit her bottom lip, immediately regretting asking her question so publicly.
“Because someone needs to find the Heart to ensure that power is restored, so why can’t it be me?” The woman with pink hair pointed out.
Fair in a sense, she supposed, but that didn’t get to the actual issue. “Will it matter that the power is back when all the people are dead because you cared more about glory than protecting them?”
“You underestimate me?”
Kamine could feel the growing tension in the room. She didn’t need a fight breaking out. “I just think that those who are too focused on finding the Heart will fail to keep the people in their village safe.”
Kamine and the woman stared intensely at each other. Although Kamine did not want to fight because she would be defenseless, she would not back down from her beliefs.
Zoya jumped in. “Have you heard there is a new magic professor?” All of the participants whipped their heads to Zoya. She shrunk at the attention, but kept going, “He’s from my village in the east, Schod. Young and very handsome, if I remember correctly.”
Someone else in the room snorted. “Yeah, I heard about him. I heard he’s tough as hell.”
“I heard that he won his Undertaking by literally tying down the other participants so he could reach the Heart first,” another noted.
“Sounds hot,” Janina said.
Kamine rolled her eyes.
“I also heard,” Zoya added with a frightened demeanor, “that a beast roams these halls. One who lures you in, and does the God’s bidding as it claws at your flesh.”
“That’s just an old tale to scare us into working hard,” someone assured.
Zoya shrugged. “Perhaps, but it’s still good to be cautious, especially when the tunnels are so unfamiliar, and it’s easy to get lost.”
Dread sliced through Kamine, and she could feel her face whiten. These revelations only confirmed what she had already known: the next few months would be pure torture.
