Author's note: Happy Valentine's, cuties! 

 

Ch 9–

 

The train pulled into a subterranean station, lit by blazing bonfires in huge hearths along both walls. We exited onto the dark stone platform, which like the rest of the station seemed to have been carved directly from the heart stone of the mountain. 

 

“Welcome, new students!” A voice echoed enthusiastically to the vaulted ceiling high above. 

 

A woman in full gold trimmed plate armor, with a huge tower shield on her back, boomed out to us on repeat. 

 

“Gather round! Gather round! Leave your things! Gather round!” She called. 

 

She had her dusty blonde hair in a big messy ponytail and a huge friendly smile plastered over her face. It looked like we were her long lost kids and she was overjoyed we’d come home. 

 

I trotted over with the rest of the students. There must’ve been nearly two hundred of us, maybe more. It made it feel like winter festival in Emberdome, when the whole town would gather in and around the square. 

 

Or rather, they used to. Hmmm. Bayloft usually has fewer students a year than this…? Were they expanding their acceptance rate?

 

“Welcome to Bayloft!” The blonde tank cried, raising her fists to the ceiling like we’d won a marathon. “I’m Brawly! Like BRAWL!! That’s my real name! Isn’t that awesome?!” 

 

She threw a few expert punches that sent little gusts of air over our heads, shaking dust from the tall pillars. 

 

There were some confused cheers from students who didn’t know how to respond. A smattering of hesitant clapping went around. 

 

The tank soaked it up like we were a stadium of roaring fans at a rock concert. 

 

“YEAHHHH!” She cheered along. 

 

Then she clapped her hands once, like an anvil being dropped on another anvil, from space. A slight breeze spread out from her along with stunned silence. 

 

This woman must be an absolute monster. Long finished with leveling. Maybe even with some Ascensions under her belt, like Grace Valant. 

 

“Let’s get serious, kids.” She proclaimed, eyes lit with an inner fire. “Listen up, your education starts now. You’re here to become Wayfinders. The name is NOT a metaphor. A lion's share of diving the Dungeon will be finding your way. Get it?! So that’s your first test!” 

 

Some concerned muttering went around.

 

A test? We had barely arrived. Classes didn’t even start for another day?! What could they be testing us on?? 

 

Brawly slammed her hands together in another cosmic boom that made me concerned about hearing damage, before I remembered I had Wayfinder stats now, albeit weak ones. I healed from regular shit like that now. 

 

We fell silent again. 

 

“Your first test,” she grinned at us. “Is to FIND your WAY—” she wiggled her brows animatedly “—to the main campus. Behind me are a number of tunnels. Beyond them? Guess what?” 

 

She waited expectantly. 

 

“More tunnels?” Guessed a mousy girl who looked terrified of her own voice.

 

“YEAH!” Cheered Brawly. “More TUNNELS! and beyond that??”

 

“More tunnels.” We chorused dumbly. 

 

“YEAHHHHH!!” She roared, thumping her chest plate. “So!” 

 

She got serious, again.

 

“You gotta make your way through these tunnels to the main campus. First one out gets a PRIZE! Ohhhh! Loftys are on the line!! What are Loftys you ask?!” She cupped her ear. 

 

“What are Loftys?” We chanted. 

 

“Not TELLING!” Brawly proclaimed. “Suffice to say, you’ll WANT ‘EM! And a butt load of them too. So scurry along my dears! Good luck! Wait! Two things!” 

 

She held up two fingers. 

 

“Clumsy old me might’ve gone into the Dungeon and wrangled up some enthusiastic vermin and then released them into the tunnels, ohhhh a week ago. They’ll be nice and HUNGRY now! So that’ll be sweet!” She grinned like she’d given us a great present. 

 

“SECOND! If you don’t make it to campus by the time the first class starts, you’re expelled. That’s it! Leave your stuff! It will be transported to campus if you make it! Go go go go GOOOOO!” 

 

A storm of protests broke out. 

 

Brawly was immediately mobbed by girls demanding answers or concessions or exceptions from her. I thought I heard a lot of people mentioning their parents' esteemed positions in society. Brawly just grinned and weathered it, in classic tank fashion. 

 

Another group of students frantically rummaged through their bags for things. 

 

I was among those, snatching up a thick blanket and a coat, some heavier boots, my trusty camp knife, and a big water bottle. I stuffed these along with one granola bar that had made its way into my suitcase into the backpack I’d gotten for classes. The coat I put on now. It was a bit warm, but I suspected I’d be glad of it before long. 

 

Plus, it was a little extra barrier to whatever ‘vermin’ were. 

 

I watched as a few students disappeared into one or another of the various tunnel exits from the platform. 

 

There were groups negotiating alliances. Forming parties.

 

Still a lot of people mobbing Brawly, who looked like she just liked getting attention. 

 

A tap on my shoulder startled me. 

 

I whirled, raising my water bottle threateningly. 

 

“Chill.” Said Jennie. 

 

She’d changed into black rogue leathers, and had a pair of daggers strapped to her thighs. Now, she really looked like a stealth assassin. It was… very hot. 

 

“Team up?” She asked, getting right to the point. 

 

I hesitated. 

 

“You don’t know anyone else?” She asked. 

 

I shook my head reluctantly. 

 

“Well, I’m legacy, I knew this was coming, I’m prepared as you can see, I’m probably a level or two higher than you, and if you don’t know anyone, I’m your only option besides going alone like a moron.” She glanced at several people going in alone. Morons, apparently. 

 

“There won’t be other offers, this place is really cliquey.” She added. 

 

I looked around, and saw a lot of tell-tale signs that this was true. I had wondered how I’d gotten left in a compartment on my own. 

 

I nodded. 

 

“Ok.” I extended a hand. “Let’s do it.” 

 

Jennie shook my hand delicately, like a princess. I half expected her to ask me to kiss her hand. 

 

Which I wouldn’t have.

 

Not immediately. Probably. 

 

“Let’s go.” She strode toward an entrance to a tunnel. 

 

The tunnels ranged wildly in size and shape. The only commonality seemed to be that there were at least sparse lights, glow stones embedded in the walls at haphazard intervals. 

 

“What are you, by the way?” Asked Jennie, eying the tunnel skeptically before rejecting it and moving to the next. 

 

“Pardon?” I asked, nonplussed. 

 

“What ARE you?” She repeated. “Like are you a tank with no gear? Or a mage with no gear? Or a—“

 

“I get it.” I snapped. “I’m a chimera summoner, if you must know.” I added sullenly to myself. “With no gear.” 

 

My camp knife felt childish, borderline comical, next to her matching pair of sinister daggers. 

 

“BY THE WAY!” Brawly suddenly yelled, sounding like she had a microphone, even though she didn’t. “Intentionally harm another student, and I will juice you like an ORANGE! Duh!”

 

I blinked. 

 

“I wasn’t worried about that.” I muttered. Then eyed the other students with renewed discomfort. “But now I am absolutely worried about it. Hopefully no one is stupid enough to get juiced.” 

 

“Probably.” Said Jennie absently. 

 

A fourth and fifth tunnel were summarily rejected before Jennie found one she liked and immediately set off down it, with me in tow. 

 

“Do you know the way?” I whispered. She was legacy after all, and had evidently known this test was coming. 

 

“No!” She answered, looking at me scandalized. “That would be cheating!” 

 

“Then what was with picking the tunnel so carefully?!” I demanded. 

 

“In the absence of other guidance, always follow your nose!” She sniffed pointedly. 

 

I did too, experimentally. 

 

I shrugged. “I don’t smell anything.” 

 

“Exactly.” She said. “Monsters stink. Still water stinks, trapped gasses stink, corpses from wildlife killed by dungeon monsters stink, classmates stink. Mostly.” She listed rapidly. 

 

“This tunnel smells like nothing. Making it the best one so far. And I wasn’t about to go sniff every single tunnel. That would be insane.” 

 

“Yeah that would be crazy.” I agreed, wholeheartedly.

 

(I cut this one in three just because there wasn't a great spot in the middle to slice. And scribby likes lots of posts, for us newbie writers. FEAR NOT! I will release 'em quickly.)