Chapter 21: The Maze of Mirrors IIA scream echoed through the chamber and Liam turned to see one of the participants falling from an elevated walkway, having apparently mistaken a reflection of stable ground for an actual platform. The person hit the floor below with a sickening crunch and lay there moaning in pain but still alive as the silver figure had promised. Other participants gave the injured person a wide berth and continued focusing on their own navigation, and Liam felt a pang of guilt for not stopping to help before remembering that this was an individual trial where everyone was competing against the clock.The timer showed nine minutes remaining and Liam was pretty sure he had made almost no progress toward finding the exit. The maze seemed to loop back on itself repeatedly and he had already passed the same distinctive crack in one mirror at least three times from different directions. He needed to change his strategy because careful methodical exploration wasn't going

Chapter 23: Shifting AlliancesThe businessman whose name Liam had learned was Robert Caldwell was gesturing animatedly while he spoke to Marcus, and his expensive suit was now rumpled and stained from three trials worth of stress and exertion. "I'm done with this team arrangement," Robert announced loudly enough for everyone nearby to hear. "You've been making decisions that benefit yourself while putting the rest of us at risk, and I'm not going to keep following someone who sees me as expendable. I'm better off on my own or finding a different group."Marcus regarded Robert with barely concealed contempt and shrugged dismissively. "Fine by me," he said coldly. "You've been dead weight since trial one anyway, hiding in corners and contributing nothing while everyone else takes risks. Don't let the door hit you on the way out."Robert's face flushed red with anger and humiliation, but he didn't respond to the insult and instead just turned and walked away toward a different cluster o

Chapter 25: Trial Four BeginsThe silver figure's appearance cast an immediate pall over the restive atmosphere, and the survivors who had been scattered throughout the plaza training areas and dormitories quickly converged on the main assembly space. Liam estimated that maybe seven or eight hundred people remained based on the crowd size, which meant they had lost nearly ninety percent of the original participants in just three trials. The faces around him showed a mixture of exhaustion, determination, and barely suppressed terror as everyone braced themselves for whatever horror the Nexus had prepared next."The rest period is concluded," the silver figure announced with its characteristic emotionless tone. "Trial four will test your ability to work cooperatively under extreme pressure while managing limited resources. You will be divided into teams of fifty and transported to separate survival zones where you must work together to overcome environmental challenges and reach an extr

Chapter 27: Into the DepthsThe vote resulted in thirty one team members choosing the moderate safe route, twelve voting for the direct dangerous path, and six preferring the longest route that avoided all marked hazards. Leah Stone declared the moderate route the winner based on simple majority, though Liam could see that the dozen people who had voted for speed were unhappy with the decision. Drake had abstained from voting entirely and just stood watching the proceedings with an unreadable expression, and Liam suspected he was calculating how to use the team's divisions to his advantage later.Leah Stone organized the team into a marching formation with scouts at the front to identify hazards, the main body in the middle carrying supplies, and guards at the rear to watch for threats from behind. Drake positioned himself with the forward scouts along with the three highest agility team members including Amanda, while Liam found himself in the middle group with Margaret and Felix. Th

Chapter 29: The Cost of ProgressThe remaining team members crossed the damaged bridge in a state of numb shock, and the process took nearly an hour because everyone moved with extreme caution after witnessing the deaths. The bridge held despite losing a significant section, though it groaned and swayed alarmingly under each group's weight. By the time the last person reached the far side, the structure had deteriorated so badly that it collapsed completely just minutes after Drake brought up the rear, sending chunks of ancient stone tumbling into the toxic river below.Team Seven now numbered forty eight people instead of fifty, and the psychological impact of those first casualties was visible on every face. The two who had died were a middle aged man named Ronald Miller and a young woman named Anna Baldwin, both level three with relatively low stats who had been struggling with the environmental challenges. Several team members were crying quietly while others stared at the collaps