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The Iron Trial Holly Black 17540K 2023-09-01

But they’re going to teachwith soe hand, fingers splayed, and said soan to glow, as though it had turned white-hot Athat sounded alht poured out fro and exclai Call overhead a lot of "Cool!" and "Awesoly admit it was kind of awesoer than any inside space Call could have ever iined It could have held three basketball courts and still have roo ar, but the walls were covered with flowstone, whichcandles had slicked the walls in dripped wax Stalage stalactites hung down, nearly touching one another in places There was a river, a bright glowing blue like luh an archway in one wall and out through another, a carved rock bridge crossing it Patterns were cut into the sides of the bridge, patterns Call didn’t recognize yet, but they reer his dad had thrown to hi back as all the apprentices fro a knot in thebus ride and he kneould bewalk to where they were supposed to sleep

The huge doors closed behind them with a crash that made Call jump He spun around just in time to see a row of sharply pointed stalactites, one after another, drop fro off the doors

Drew, behind Call, sed audibly "But -- how are we supposed to get back out?"

"We’re not," Call said, happy to have an answer for this, at least "We’re not ever supposed to get out"

Drew edged away Call supposed he couldn’t bla treated like a freakazoid just for pointing out the obvious

A hand took hold of his sleeve "Come on" It was Aaron

Call turned and saw that Master Rufus and Taer in her step that hadn’t been there before, under the watchful eyes of her parents Muttering under his breath, Call followed the three of theisterium

Master Rufus held up one hand, and a fla like a torch It re on the water in the final test He wondered what he should have done to really fail -- to fail in a way that wouldn’t have h a narrow corridor that smelled faintly of sulfur It spilled into another room, this one with a series of pools, one of which bubbled away muddily and another full of pale, eyeless fish that dispersed at the sound of the humans’ footfalls

Call wanted to ht be undetectable if they were servants of the Eneed to creep hi on all the students

Next they came upon a cavern with five doors set into its far wall The first was made of iron; the second, copper; the third, bronze; the fourth, silver; and the last of gleaold All of the doors reflected the fire in Master Rufus’s hand,flames dance eerily in the h above hi, so that one

Master Rufus didn’t lead theh any of the doors but kept theed roo in as roup of lizards with ge to burn with blue flaasped