Hera was too tired to dream, but what she had was far from a peaceful night. Her body changed even while she slept. Her skin seemed to burn, and her bones to shift. The feeling should be more than enough to wake her, but somehow she was still in such a deep sleep that even her alarms or the calls from her boss were not able to disturb her.

  When she finally woke up, it was well over noon. Hera sat up on the bed, and in a half daze opened her eyes. Yet, that small action was enough to jolt her awake in a second.

  There were three blue screens floating in front of her. One that she didn't open herself.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Level up outside the allowed parameters.

  Attributes under the accepted value located.

  Attribute points redistributed evenly.

  Bonus points utilized in attribute redistribution.

  Bonus attribute points given due unexpected exception.

  Permission to redistribute bonus points given to make up for unexpected exception.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Bonus points acquired by evolving a hidden skill.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Hera Kingsley -- Role: Civilian Level: 2

  Attributes: Increase all

  Strength: 10 + Endurance: 10 +

  Agility: 10 + Charisma: 10 +

  Intelligence: 10 + Luck: 10 +

  Attribute Points Available: 7

  Skills:

  Exponential Growth (Evolved from Attribute Reallocation)

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Exponential Growth:

  While all attributes have the same value, the user can increase all the attributes by 1 at once.

  Cost changes with the value of the attributes.

  Current attribute point cost to use the skill: 3 points

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Hera was staring at the translucent window in front of her. She had read everything ten times, but it seemed impossible.

  Not her stats, it was well known that every now and then someone did something and the system had to change whatever it was to a more acceptable outcome. She remembered a level four baseball player who stacked a few skills, making his fastball break not only the bat that it hit but also the arm of the batter who was level ten. Soon after that, his skills changed, and he couldn't use that powerful throw anymore.

  There wasn't that much information about what happened, but the overall explanation was somewhat simple. He got a couple of different skills that ended up influencing each other. But that was fine. In fact, it was what people were supposed to do to be strong. However, there was one skill in particular, a skill whose name was never revealed, that worked in a way to trigger a feedback loop.

  And the reason why he was the first to discover was somewhat silly. The man was a mage. Not a fighter. It was a mage skill that allowed him to trigger that effect. Usually, the guild would control the information about that kind of thing. After all, they didn't allow anything related to skills or the MAZE to become public. But it happened in the middle of the World Series.

  In the end, they just gave a statement and used that situation to reinforce the rules about not letting information from the MAZE reach the Earth. Their argument was that inside the MAZE it was easier to fix mistakes, but our planet was too fragile to let people with that much power go unchecked. And withholding information was the best way to avoid random people getting too strong with no supervision on Earth.

  While having the System manually change her attributes was strange, it somehow felt right. As if it was just making sure things were as they should be. What made her speechless was the skill. Hidden skills were rare, but a hidden skill that can evolve is absurdly rare. No rule said that hidden skills could not change, but at the same time, she wasn't aware of anyone who had seen one. And if they had, they didn't share it with anyone.

  She read the skill description one more time and took a deep breath before hitting the increase all button. Just like that, all her stats went from 10 to 11. Now, she had 4 bonus points.

  The words Michael spoke the night before rang in her head, 'If the average is 12, you can join.'

  A 12 average attribute would be the same as having 12 on all of them. If this were really happening, she could be an explorer today. Not in a month, or a year, or after her next level up.

  Today.

  She pressed the button once more and saw the numbers change. Now every single attribute was at 12. Hera meet the requirements to get in even without a skill. But maybe this evolved skill would count. After all, it would increase her stats by a lot. If she tried to increase her attributes without it, she would be able to have 1 particular stat at 13, while the rest still would be stuck at 10. So instead of gaining just 3 points in an attribute, she gained a total of 12 using the same amount of points. And there was still one extra point she could save for the next level.

  Hera pinched her arm to make sure it wasn't just a dream.

  "Ouch!"

  She was surprised by how much that hurt, although it made sense, her strength had almost doubled, her brain might need some time before being able to adjust. And since her Endurance had decreased, that could also be affecting that. For a while, she would have to be very careful.

  She got up and started walking towards the bathroom to take a shower. Her sheets were drenched in sweat. But she didn't truly understand why. The body probably used a lot of energy to change someone after they level up, and energy generates heat, so the body needs to sweat to cool off. That was the most logical reason for that.

  Hera stopped. How did she reach that conclusion so fast?

  She was not a dumb person, but her mind always seemed to take some time to get to the result she wanted. Even back in school, math wasn't her best subject. Not because she couldn't make the calculations, but because she had to do things step by step. But now, she quickly did some mental math related to the amount of books she had to set aside yesterday just for testing. Five boxes that had 50, twelve shelves with 8 each, three trips of two boxes plus the shelves.

  About 738 books.

  "Yeah. That sounds right," Hera remembered the screen of the computer at the bookstore.

  Her boss forced them to track every book they took from storage every day to make sure no one was stealing. Yesterday, Hera had taken 754 books. The almost 740 from organizing that display three times, and an extra 14 from customers during her shift. She was able to make that calculation in her mind, something that it would be hard for her to do in the past.

  Maybe the reason for that was her intelligence attribute?

  It increased by 4 points. Hera opened her stats and tapped on the attribute to read its description.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Intelligence: increases the mental ability of the user.

  The higher the attribute, the faster the stored data, can be accessed.

  It also increases the strength of magic based skills.

  Current modifier: +2%

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Hera knew this by heart, even if she had spent the last five years trying to forget this knowledge. However, she still was surprised the increase had such a powerful effect. Then again, the really big effect was the -10% effect that attributes below 10 would give.

  Still with that on her mind, She took a shower to clean all the sweat and tears that covered her from the previous night. The pressure of the water was relaxing. For the first time in years, Hera felt truly happy.

  Looking to the side, she saw the creams and moisturizers that a friend had given her a few months back, and for the first time, she decided to use them.

  One hour later, Hera came out of the shower, feeling refreshed she looked in the mirror. Her face was still hers, but different. Her skin seemed smoother, and her long blond hair replaced its split ends and greasy look with a cleaner and silkier look. Even while she brushed it like she always did, it was clearly different. Her arms had recovered, only small bruises that should be gone in a few days, but she could still see a burn mark on her back through her reflection on the glass. Even if the System had healed her, it didn't completely removed the scars of the ordeal she went through.

  'This must be the Charisma attribute. It improves our looks, and what else again?' she thought to herself before opening the attribute screen.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Charisma: Increases the attractiveness of the user.

  Due to its subjective nature, the attribute is based on what the user finds attractive.

  It also increases the friendliness of intelligent non sapient creatures in the MAZE.

  Current modifier: + 2%

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The last line was new. Hera was sure of that. She knew the descriptions by heart, and there was no mention of creatures in the MAZE. She reread it to be sure her mind wasn't playing tricks on her.

  Intelligent life inside the MAZE. That was something Hera never considered, but it made sense. Such a big place was bound to have created some sort of intelligent life. The funny part was that by saying 'non sapient' creatures, it also proved the existence of other species. Which, wasn't really a secret. People knew about elves and dwarves. For some reason they couldn't really be outside the MAZE, and even if mixed children were born, they eventually left to live inside the MAZE. Without exception.

  There had to be a reason for that, but Hera herself had no idea what it could be. Then again, starting now she would discover more.

  She took her phone and saw the twenty-three missed calls from her boss, including a few texts threatening to fire her.

  'That's fine,' she thought.

  Before going to the Guild, Hera wanted to quit. Being an Explorer is her future. There was no reason to keep any other jobs available. To her, there was no other option, not anymore.

  Hera put on her dark gray jeans, a light blue hoodie, and her black combat boots. She always felt more comfortable in practical clothing. And now that she would be an explorer, people would stop saying things like, 'You should dress up more.'

  Taking the keys out of her bag, she ran towards the train station, ready to start her new life.

  Quitting her job was the first step, thankfully, her boss wasn't there. Today, the manager, Odelia, was in charge. She was a sweet older woman who always tried to help the employees, even when the boss was harassing them. Hera didn't give a reason to quit. She didn't want to be bombarded with questions about it. She just wanted to leave this place.

  Odelia tried to make Hera stay, but the older woman knew it was for the best. Hera was a timid and sweet girl, and the boss took advantage of it. Everyone knew. Odelia was happy to see Hera going somewhere else, especially since she had a spark in her eye.

  Just a couple of hours after leaving her home, Hera was ready to change her life for good. Or at least that's what she expected to happen. She stopped in front of the guild and took a couple of deep breaths to calm herself down before stepping in.

  The Guild was busy. There were young people who seemed to be excited sitting on one of the benches. A group of kids wearing the same uniform, apparently about to start a tour. Couples and families looking at each other with big smiles, and with anxious expressions likely praying for a chance for some of them to level up. Hera's eye seemed to gravitate towards a strong-looking man with suntanned skin and thick gray chops walking towards the locker room.

  He had a muscular build, almost unnaturally so. His skin almost looked as if made of stone, impossible to break or shift in any way. Each step was powerful, the sound echoing louder than all the noise, yet he nimbly moved through the crowd without even grazing their clothes.

  The man gave a powerful impression on Hera. She wondered why no one else seemed to pay any mind to him. After all, it was hard not to notice. And he looked the type that would make the children react in some way. Brushing that aside, she walked toward the counter.

  "Excuse me," Hera spoke up

  A woman with chestnut hair tied in a bun was sitting on the other side of the counter. She gave Hera a big smile.

  "Hello! Welcome to the Explorers Guild. I'm Carol. What can I help you with?"

  Hera always got surprised when someone treated her so well, even if it was part of their job.

  "Oh, hi, I'm Hera... I'm here to join the Guild," she said, trying her best to show some confidence.

  "That's great Hera, do you have your card? I can check the system for your information with it," Carol got up from the chair so she wouldn't have to speak so loudly.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  Hera gave her card to the attendant and kept looking around, seeing the Guild in a different light.

  After she found out her stats, this place seemed dreadful and horrifying. It was the source of her worst memories. The moment her life went wrong. But now it felt warm, happy, and full of hope. She chuckled, thinking about how she was too young to be thinking like that when Carol said.

  "I'm sorry, but we don't have any job openings available at the moment, but I can put you on the waiting list," The attendant smiled and handed the card back to Hera.

  "Ah, No.. I mean, I'm here to become an explorer," Hera said, embarrassed for not making things clear.

  "Oh, sorry, but according to our file, your level 1 stats don't meet the criteria to become an explorer. Since the Devil Hunt, we have some minimum requirements in order to have safer conditions," Carol gave a soft smile. She was used to turning people down like that.

  "But... I'm level 2." Hera said, activating her card.

  The cards only show any info for their owner unless they are activated. It was just basic information, the name, level, and role. Most people would have it as a civilian.

  Carol frowned. The system said that Hera Kingsley was level 1, and she could only change that for the first time in a Guild. However, there was no record of her ever doing a level up, and the Guild never got that part wrong.

  Today had already been a terrible day for Carol. She had been dealing with problems since the beginning of her shift. From organizing the impromptu tour, to having to worry about the new class of explorers.

  Apparently, there was at least one issue more to deal with.

  "I'm sorry, but there is no record of your increasing your level. If you wish to pay for a level up, you must come back after making the appointment online. I can't make that for you as our system is going through a regular maintenance today," Carol lied so she could get back to the rest of her tasks.

  Hera blinked a few times. Her level was 2. The card said it.

  "But, I'm level 2."

  Carol gave her a stern look.

  "Hera, I understand that you must really want this, but we need to trust the people who become explorers. We can't have someone who would fake the information that shows on the card just to get in. I know people get fake cards for all sorts of unsavory reasons. But you are in luck, that I can't afford to spend time making a police report right now. So just leave and I'll pretend I never saw that."

  Hera never heard about being able to fake the card, and she had leveled up. It wasn't her fault the Guild records were missing.

  "But I..." she started talking, but Carol cut her off, raising her hand.

  "Look, you can make an appointment to level up, you can leave, or they can escort you out. I apologize for being rude, but we have a full day today, and I don't have time to deal with this. If you press I'm going to have to get the authorities involved."

  While she spoke, two burly men approached Hera from the sides. They looked like bouncers from clubs and escorted her to the exit. Their presence made her shrink and just follow along out of embarrassment. However, when Hera saw the big open doors get closer, she stopped walking.

  "I'm not going," she said.

  This was going to be the second time she left the Guild after being turned away. But this time, she had the right attributes for it. It wasn't a rule that was stopping her, but a woman who wasn't doing her job properly.

  The two men looked at each other, and with a sigh, the one on the right spoke.

  "Look, miss. It's better if you go, we don't want to make a scene."

  Her hands were shaking. But she wasn't going to be robbed of her dreams again. She met the requirements and had a skill. It was her right to apply to be an explorer.

  "I. Am. Not. Going. Let me talk to Helena," she said.

  Hearing that name, Carol got up. Helena had said something about a girl, but she wasn't fast enough to say anything to stop what was about to happen.

  The man who spoke to Hera grabbed her arm and started to push her towards the exit. Hera, being pushed, focused her entire body into pushing the man back, slamming her feet into the ground as hard as she could. She felt a tingling sensation covering every part of her and then focusing on her legs.

  She intended to push back, to stop the man from taking her outside. But something else happened. The moment her feet slammed into the ground, she was launched towards him. After the impact, he went flying backward with her. Both hit the ground and slid towards the counter.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Hidden skill unlocked: All In (Active)

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  [All In] effects deactivated, the cooldown will now start

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  "Ouch."

  Hera's shoulder had slammed against the bouncer, and now it hurt a lot.

  Seeing the sudden burst, Carol stood up and rushed to the two that were on the floor.

  "Are you okay?" her eyes were switching from Hera to the security.

  "Yeah, this miss packs a bigger punch than I was expecting," the first bouncer said while the second was running towards them with an angry look and ready to attack. Seeing that reaction, Carol screamed at him.

  "Peter, Stop!"

  The man slowed down but still got close to Hera, trying to make sure she didn't try anything else.

  "Peter, for fuck's sake, calm down."

  Hera got surprised by that. Guild attendants usually were very polite, especially since they worked directly with the customers.

  Carol helped the cause of all this trouble get up, while Peter helped his partner. He was still staring at the small woman who had thrown him onto the ground.

  Yet, before anyone else was able to say anything, a dark-skinned woman came from the hallway, walking towards the desk like a hurricane.

  "What is going on here? I heard that noise from the break room" As soon as Helena saw Hera, she gave a big smile and rushed towards her with a shout. Almost tackling her new friend when she hugged her, "Hera! I'm so glad you are here."

  "Ah.. me too.." Still shocked about the situation, Hera could only follow Helena's lead.

  "Hey Carol, what happened?" Letting go of the hug, she turned to her coworker.

  "Well..." Carol explained everything, being interrupted a few times by Hera apologizing to the security guards and to her. Even Peter, the stubborn one, couldn't help but feel bad and apologize to her as well.

  "Ok, I got it, but since no one got hurt, we can brush this off, right?" Before even receiving an answer, Helena grabbed Hera's hand and guided to the hallway "I'm gonna take care of her in the back, don't worry about the paperwork I'll deal with it too."

  Carol could only sigh. That was how Helena was. She would bulldoze through a situation, and there was hardly anything left to do by the end. The attendant looked around and apologized to the other visitors, who only nodded and grumbled a bit.

  One of the kids pulled the teacher's coat before asking, "Teacher, what is fuck?"

  The teacher glared at Carol, who could only turn pale while looking at the children.

  Hera and Helena were on a room in the back, surrounded by small cubicles. Some of them were empty, others had people typing away, filling reports, and doing what was necessary to keep the Guild running.

  "Again, I'm so sorry. Michael should have known better. And I should have stayed." Helena was apologizing for what happened the previous night for the fifth time.

  Hera was fine. If things worked out differently, she could have been angry. Now she felt like she owed the man who tossed her out of the leveling chamber a thank you.

  "Don't worry. I told you I'm fine, and everything worked out." She gave a soft smile that almost made Helena cry.

  It was such a pure smile that only a baby should be able to do it.

  "Okay then, to finish your registration, let's see how your stats are looking then."

  Helena picked a pale green orb and put it on the desk. There was a cable attached to the back, and the sphere seemed to have some milky liquid inside.

  "Just put your hand here. That way, I can see your stats through the monitor. You need this to show your stats unless you become an explorer. After that, you only need to show your Guild card. Then again, you do have to update it. You can do it manually or let the Guild do it. Usually, people who don't want to share every skill they got just do it by hand. As long as your level matches when we check, people won't be too stingy about this."

  Hera nodded and placed her hand on the orb. It was warm, but not too much. After a few seconds, she felt her hair standing. Helena scratched her head and put a mirror in front of Hera.

  "Right, sorry about that, sometimes it gets a bit of static, and well, you get a bit pointy," Hera laughed a bit while the orb was doing its job.

  With a 'ping', the screen in front of them flashed, and Hera's status were displayed.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Hera Kingsley -- Role: Civilian -- Level: 2

  Attributes:

  Strength: 11(12) Endurance: 11(12)

  Agility: 11(12) Charisma: 11(12)

  Intelligence: 11(12) Luck: 11(12)

  Remaining attribute points: 1

  Skills:

  Passive:

  Exponential Growth

  Active:

  All in

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Exponential Growth:

  While all attributes have the same value,

  the user can increase all the attributes by 1 at once.

  Cost changes with the value of the attributes

  Current attribute point cost to use the skill: 3 points

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  All In (Rank 1):

  The user can increase one of its attributes to perform a single action, as if all the available bonus points were allocated in the relevant attribute. The attribute will have bonus increments and, at the same time, reduce all other attributes to 11 (10 + level - 1) for 5 hours.

  Value of attribute when the skill is used: 14,5

  Cooldown: 36 hours Remaining (35:48:35)

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  "Ohhh, that's amazing!" Helena was reading Heras's status.

  Impressed with a level 2 with 12 average points. Hera, on the other hand, was staring at her skill. Not only it was an active skill that would make one of her attributes stronger, but it was also a rank 1 skill. That meant in higher ranks, the skill could have more potent effects, or a lower cooldown and debuff.

  How much was the bonus increment? If it followed the regular stats rule, it would be around 50%, since she would need 8 points to increase a single stat from 10 to 14.

  Skills that had a rank would increase their power with each rank. In theory, the next rank could increase her stats even more, or lower the cooldown. There were many possibilities, and Hera was running through a few of them in her mind, wondering if she could direct this evolution until she felt someone poke her arm.

  Startled, she pulled the arm back. Helena was resting her head on one hand, her other arm stretched towards the recently turned level 2 woman.

  "Are you okay? You stayed there for a couple of minutes without answering."

  Helena gave a warm smile that only made Hera feel guilty for ignoring her.

  "Yes... sorry. After yesterday, my mind is just... different."

  Hera lowered her head, trying not to look at Helena.

  "Oh, that's okay, you must have changed your Intelligence attribute. It does that to you, especially in the first few days. Let me check one thing...Wait... What? Hera, what did you do to change your stats so much? You even lowered the endurance."

  It was the first time Helena saw something like that. According to the file that wasn't properly updated, Hera had some pretty crappy stats, but now they were higher than they should be. Even if she could redistribute her points as Michael had said, there were twelve extra attribute points in the middle.

  "Yeah, when I woke up, my Stats Relocation skill evolved into Exponential Growth, and then I could use my points to increase them all at once," Hera explained.

  Helena's eyes widen, and she quickly tapped on the skill Hera just mentioned. Even before she finished reading the description, her jaw had already dropped. This skill was incredible. Sure, it meant that using this would mean you would never excel at one thing. But you would never have a weakness either. It was perfect for anyone who wanted to cover all their bases. And probably the best skill someone who would have the explorer role could wish for.

  But thinking about it a bit more, it also meant that her attributes would be so much higher than anyone else at the same level. So what if Hera wouldn't be able to excel at one thing? Someone who had roughly the same attributes as Hera and focused on Endurance would have 17 points on it right now. While Hera had 12. Sure, at level 2 that was a big difference, but at later levels that difference would be negligible. The fact that the other attributes were at the same value would be much more impactful than anything else.

  She grabbed the recruit by the hand and looked deep into her eyes.

  "Hera, please tell me everything that happened before your skill evolved."

  "Okay... " Hera was staring a bit worried by the look on Helena's face, but she started to recount what happened the night before, skipping the part about the crying since she felt too embarrassed to share it.

  "Right, I got it... maybe. I need to put in a requisition really quickly. Just give me a second."

  Helena started to type, with a serious expression. Looking at the woman, Hera could see how beautiful she was. A sharp jawline and tiny nose, with her curls flowing to the side of her head. She had an intense look in her eyes that only made the hazel color more vibrant. Her dark bronze skin even seemed to be glowing ever so slightly, and there was also a reddish spot near her jawline. Hera started to wonder what Helena Charisma was at.

  "Hera, you are staring, dear."

  Hera quickly looked away, getting red with embarrassment before saying softly, "Sorry."

  "It's okay. Now, let me give you a quick advanced lesson. Very few skills can't be acquired by other people. Actually, as far as we know, the only type of skill that can't be learned by someone else would be innate skills. Those are skills that you get when you level up for the first time, or that you always had. But they are not exclusive. For instance, other people had your Attribute Relocation. The skills will always work the same way if they have the same name, that is. So your skill is just like the skill anyone else could have. Are you following so far?"

  Helena stopped typing for a bit and looked at Hera, who responded by nodding.

  With the confirmation, the typing resumed, "Right. That also means that any change in one skill can be used by anyone else that has it. So if we can replicate the condition, other people could evolve their skills just like you did."

  That meant that Hera wasn't special or chosen by the system. She was just lucky, which was fine since she was able to discover this and become an explorer was special enough. Even though she still felt like the system still owed her a bit.

  "What I'm doing right now is making a quest to test the conditions of the skill evolution. That way, if we managed to confirm it, we can add to our database, and all explorers who have the skill can know of the possibility and even look for other possibilities with it."

  Hera stared at Helena. She never heard of a skill database or something like that.

  "This is a trade secret. All explorers know about it, but no one is allowed to tell civilians. We do this so that no one tries to upgrade a skill before leveling up. That can be very dangerous for both the person and whoever is around them. You would probably only hear about this in a couple of weeks since the basic training takes a while to get there. But I felt like it was fair for you to know since you helped find this out. And of course, that way you can have a bit of an easier time in class when you get to this subject."

  Hera looked at Helena without understanding those last few sentences.

  "What class?" Hera asked.

  Helena gave Hera a big smile before answering.

  "Your explorer class silly, you have the best average stats I ever have seen, two absurdly strong skills to boot, and wanted to be an explorer. Do you think I'm letting such a prime specimen of a recruit escape? Now there is a class next month for the new recruits, but honestly, I don't want to wait two whole months to see what type of explorer you will be. Soooo, I can pull a few strings and make you join the class that starts today. It will be easy. All I have to do is click this button. But the choice is one hundred percent yours. If you need some time to process and talk to someone, you are free to do so for as long as you want."

  Helena stopped talking so fast, looked at Hera with a calm expression, before slowing down again.

  "I don't mean to pressure you. Sometimes I just get a bit too excited. This is a big decision, and even if you say you changed your mind, it will be okay. You can even come back in a few months or years, wanting to join again, and we will welcome you with open arms."

  Hera was overwhelmed by all that information. Yesterday at this hour, she was still a clerk in a bookstore with no hope of having a happy life. And now, she could start the training to become an explorer today. Even if she kept saying that kind of thing to herself, Hera figured it would take a few days at least to properly start. A lot of paperwork, the classes, it would all take time.

  She took a few deep breaths trying to avoid a panic attack, and Helena was giving her some space while placing a glass of water in front of her.

  Hera took a big sip of water. After calming down, she looked back at the woman who changed her life, who spoke again.

  "So, Hera Kingsley, should I click this button?"

  Hera looked back at Helena, who saw the fire in her eyes. She had a sixth sense about which recruits would do well as explorers, and to her, Hera seemed to be one of them. That spark was all the confirmation she needed.

  "Yes, please!" Hera answered.

  Helena gave a big smile and then clicked the button, getting up and taking Hera by the hand.

  "Great, now follow me. You are already late for the first class."

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