A shadowy substance swirled in front of me revealing a well-toned elderly man in its place. “A child? No, a deviation… Interesting.” The elder muttered while circling in place, eventually stopping to hold eye contact.

“Forgive my rudeness, allow me to explain your situation. There are many stages and based on how many you can complete will determine the amount of inheritance I will bestow upon you. Three is the best anyone has ever completed. Your mind will be wiped if you do not pass the third challenge and you’ll never set foot in this place again. Questions before we start?”

“The warning mentioned death, even if I fail a stage I won’t die?”

“You have the option on whether you wish to continue challenging more stages or call it quits. Do note that if you die during and before the completion of any such stage then that is the end. You will be dead. However, quit while being ahead and you save your life albeit some flaky memories. Anything else, kid?” The elder motioned both his arms about during the brief explanations.

“I was taught to never live in the past and now I need power to carry on living. Let’s start this already.” A few regrets passed through my mind, was this really the right decision? Was it worth ruining everything I’ve achieved so far with the others? My life had been hell until I met Eris and things started to be fun for once.

I nodded my worries away, waiting for the first stage to commence. “How very ironic to hear. Hold onto those words and don’t ever forget them. The first trial will test your constitution. You will not be able to harness any magic and your only goal is to reach past that flag pole over there.”

He pointed in the distance as the space around us altered with a flagpole rising up from the ground and then the white floor changing into a grassy plain. It felt like we were transported to a random grassy plain out in the countryside. The flag post looked some fifty-odd feet away from us. The sky was stunning, so clear and blue, devoid of all pollution.

“There is no time limit, you may begin.” The elder vanished from where he stood, leaving me to admire the scenery.

This should be a cinch or so I thought before my first step forward. I was instantly brought down to a knee, almost losing my balance and falling over. The pressure was intense, it reminded me of the gravity room in that gym multiplied by a lot.

My leg muscles flexed as my body followed suit back into a standing position. Before taking another step forward I held out a fist, using it as a rough gauge on how much strength was needed to adjust. Things were manageable as I took several steps forward, but a lingering suspicion had me on edge.

Ten feet across with sweat dripping along the side of my cheek. This was insanely difficult even after all the boosts from the monster core. The last several steps felt like I was carrying a car above my head or at least what I guessed it felt like.

If the intensity increased exponentially, this would be impossible. Thinking back on the elderly man’s words he mentioned this test had no time limit. I relaxed into a comfortable upright position, closing my eyes. Just like how my uncle taught, I focused on circulating my ki. Letting it build thicker throughout my entire body until the tension in my muscles grew slack.

Much better now that ki was constantly feeding power to my body. Each step was firm and steady until the impressions in the grassy dirt sunk deeper. Almost eighty percent there, my joints popped like popcorn being heated. One more step and I’d start becoming intimate friends with the grass.

The next step forced me flat on the ground. My shirt clung tightly drenched in sweat. I never had the amount of ki I do now, nor have I ever had to focus on maintaining a constant stream of it throughout my entire body. Before I knew it, minutes turned into hours and my sense of time dwindled in this place. Hunger escaped me and I didn’t even question why.

Standing back up from my cross-legged meditation, I felt ready to tackle the last few feet. In one fell swoop, I kicked off the ground with as much force possible, rocketing myself hands outstretched for the pole. While aiming for the midsection, the gravity caused me to barely catch hold of the base. Yes, finally!

“Well done, time elapsed; twenty-four days.” The voice appeared from the elder materializing to my side.

“Twenty-four days? That’s impossible!” Before I allowed a response, fear riddled my mind. “Eris, what happened to her!”

“Your companion outside? Oh, don’t worry about her. She’s safe.” Not allowing me to refute. “You see, time operates differently in here. Only a matter of minutes has passed on the outside.”

“Ah…, now the no time limit for the first stage makes more sense.” Upon closer inspection, the old man had long gray hair, the stereotype image of an important wise man. Though not at all frail, his body was a contradiction with toned muscles and visible scars, each with their own story I bet.

“How is that even possible?” My eyes shifted up towards him.

“You are in a ring, talking to a spirit of the deceased and you think that’s weird? Short story short, magic. Aside from that, if you pass these trials you will learn in due course.” The surrounding shifted instantly in the matter of a blink, everything morphed into a metropolitan setting similar to Avalon.

“Here we have the second trial. A calamity shall fall upon this city. Your only goal is to survive thirty minutes; once the clock tower chimes, you will have passed. You may back out with your life intact, minus some memories. Only one has ever completed this stage and they finished the first one in a matter of seconds. Even your magic may not be able to save you from this one.”

“Magic? How do you know about my magic?” I don’t even know about my magic, only that things would get dark and people all around died.

“I only know the past. I sense the same power from you as the people of the Raven Clan. Rumors were they had the power over death and as such have been hunted down for over several millennia. Your presence here may be fate and there’s only one way to truly tell.” The wise man finished allowing time to process everything.

“What do you mean by power over death? I don't think they exist anymore. I haven’t seen anyone with similar magic to mine.” I urged him to tell me more.

“There’s no point in knowing if you do not survive the next trial.” He waited for my decision.

If I was ever unsure before at least now there was another reason for risking my life in here. I didn’t believe in the fate nonsense he spouted, but from what I could tell he had no reason to lie so far.

“I will pass the next stage and you will tell me everything that you know.” It wasn’t that I was demanding, but more so reaffirming my resolve.

“I offer a prayer to Stith, may he grant you protection in the trying times to come.” The elder vanished as darkness layered the city. Not a single star filled the night sky as the clocktower sounded off the start of the stage.