"Oh, one more thing. The last four students to finish will be expelled." Trendle added quickly before nodding to Miss Lariet, who tapped a button upon her scroll. At that instant, all the platforms lined along the cliff wall dropped down, dropping those standing upon them down into the cloud below and into the gauntlet itself.
As they fell, below the cloud they could see the star shining away in the distance, radiant and bright, an easy to keep an eye on destination. But first, they had to land. Some of the applicants were already taking note, the girl in the raincoat opening her umbrella and kicking off the wall, soaring ahead. Another, wielding a large flail, spun it above her head to propel her forward and a larger fellow fired a powerful shot from his weapon to boost him forward. The race truly was on.
For those who couldn't force their way forward, there was a large bank of snow beneath them to catch their fall.