The hundred chosen candidates were led away from the rest.
Behind them, the other nine hundred recruits were marched toward a lower gate, where attendants waited with trays of wriggling Soldier Gu. Even from a distance, Ethan could hear the faint scratching of countless tiny legs against the trays.
Some candidates approached eagerly, while others hesitated at the sight of the creatures they were expected to implant into their bodies.
Ethan's group followed the lead Archon in the opposite direction, descending a narrow staircase that smelled of damp roots and old honey. The deeper they went, the colder the air became. Moisture clung to the walls, where dark, vein-like growths pulsed beneath a translucent membrane. Occasionally, something moved behind the surface, its shadow slipping away before anyone could get a proper look.
