Chapter 1
"WAKE THE FUCK UP!!!"
Why would I even-?
"Wake up, dumbass! If we're late, we're dead!" Klaus was standing on my bed, yelling like a madman.
The Day of the Blessing. Shit. I had forgotten.
"YOU could've woken me up earlier!" I snapped.
"YOU were the one who said we had to party before the Blessing!"
I sat up, ready to argue-but my brain had no clever response. So I just got dressed. Fast. Messy.
Mismatched socks. Pants inside out.
"It's the Day of the Blessing... can you believe it?"
"Yeah," I muttered. Nineteen years. And now it was here.
As we rushed out, Klaus asked, "Do you think we'll get cool Blessings? Like the Seekers?"
"Power isn't given. It's earned," I repeated the mantra drilled into us.
"I know. But they never told us *how* we're supposed to earn it."
He wasn't wrong. No one knew what really happened during the Blessing.
"We'll find out soon enough."
Klaus tied his golden hair in a ponytail. Still grinning. "I want something flashy. Elemental. Maybe
telekinesis."
"With your superhero complex, you'll get super strength. Walk around like a mountain of muscles."
"I'd still look hot." He burst out laughing.
An instructor stormed in.
"Cadets #1 and #3, why are you still here?! The truck will leave without you!"
He squinted at us. "Normally, this kind of tardiness means isolation. But today..."
A pause. "Just move."
Klaus and I bolted. Down three flights. Past the training hall.
We made it to the courtyard just in time.
Instructor Heitor's voice cut the air. "Today you'll learn if you're worthy of a Blessing and entry
into the Labyrinth... or if you'll remain in the New World as-ordinary citizens."
Everyone heard the contempt in his voice.
"Remember: there are no bad Blessings. Power isn't given. It's earned."
Empty words. We all knew the truth.
If your Blessing sucks, you're stuck near the surface. Picking fruit. Carrying crates. Maybe you
become an instructor. Maybe a hunter.
"But I'll reach the end," I whispered to myself.
"...You may become Seekers. Able to reach the deeper levels."
Heitor began listing names. Girls first.
Sixty names. I didn't know any of them.
They trained separately. No contact.
Except Klaus.
"Elena Torres." The last name. She turned, smiled at us.
"Lip! Not only is my girlfriend smoking hot, she's also top of the year!" Klaus shouted. No one
cared. Relationships were forbidden. He never gave a damn.
Four years ago, I helped him sneak into the girls' wing. That's how he met her. I spent twelve days
in isolation.
"Now, the boys."
Klaus suddenly got quiet. "Lip... do you know if the Blessing happens in the same place for guys and
girls?"
His smile was gone.
"No idea. Shut up. We're up next."
"Third-ranked: Filippos Angelus."
I stepped forward. Felt the stares. Some jealous. Some hateful. I kept walking.
"Second-ranked: Themdo Angelus."
I froze.
Them. Tall, dark, silent. Same dorm for eleven years. I had no clue.
Same last name. Angelus. Like me. Like Klaus.
I thought we were the only children of the Angel.
Guess not.
"First-ranked: Nicklaus Angelus."
Klaus stepped forward. Pride in every motion.
We boarded the truck.
The door slammed shut.
No one spoke.
The engine roared.
The Labyrinth was waiting.