The morning light filtered through the sanctuary's high windows, casting long golden beams across the stone floor. Elias stood at the center of the chamber, his arms crossed, watching the five young men and women who had gathered before him. They were nervous, their eyes wide, their hands trembling slightly. He remembered that feeling. The fear. The uncertainty. The desperate need to prove yourself worthy.
"You have been chosen," Elias said, his voice steady and calm. "Not because you are the strongest. Not because you are the bravest. But because you have been touched by the balance. You have seen the darkness and survived. You have felt the light and embraced it."
The youngest of the group, a boy of perhaps seventeen with dark hair and intense eyes, stepped forward. "We are ready to se
