Orlan and the girl beside him pulled at the tendrils around the pinned student's boot while Sheila froze the damp channel beneath them. The pinned girl cried out, but the tendrils loosened enough for her leg to slide free. Jared moved along the upper edge and reached the bleeding student just as Sheila ordered him down, supporting him without stepping into the center. Sera guided two others to the right side, making them wait between movements.
One student panicked when a Vein Crawler brushed her boot and nearly jumped straight onto bare soil.
"Stop," Sheila snapped.
The girl froze mid-motion, trembling.
"Look at me," Sheila said.
The girl looked up, eyes wide.
"Right foot to the stone. Not the soil. Slowly."
"I can't—"
"You can. Right foot. Stone."
The girl obeyed, breathing shakily as her boot touched the stone surface.
"Good. Left foot to the root. Do not hop."
She did it.
The Vein Crawler beneath her shifted but did not strike.
