The first teams entered cautiously.
That caution lasted.
Nobody laughed when the echoes moved.
A team from the western continent reached the first control point just as one member's Law was suppressed.
He immediately drew upon two stored Laws and interwove them, using one to stabilize his body and the other to hold the activation formation together while his teammates intercepted the incoming echo.
There was no hesitation long enough to matter.
That pleased Lucien.
Another team reacted differently.
Two members tried to preserve their original Laws for too long.
They succeeded for several seconds.
Then their control broke at almost the same time.
The team recovered, but the delay cost them the first control point.
Nobody watching needed an explanation.
The lesson was obvious.
Knowing when to stop forcing a compromised Law mattered just as much as knowing how to use the Interweaver afterward.
•••
The trial grew more interesting at the relay stations.
