The internet is going crazy right now. At least that's what Alex thought after looking at the latest posts. The hot topic was a strange dream. Thousands upon thousands or even millions must have seen it. Some already spoke of a message from God but none of this mattered to him, yet. Instead, soon he would find out for himself if the stories were true or not because he was about to go to bed.

Alex himself was skeptical. As were many other. The hate comments showed that much. All the discussions were just distracting him and yet he kept reading. He rebuked himself for that but it was hard to stop.

He finally put his cell phone away and turned off the lamp next to him. It was 3 a.m., an inopportune time to sleep.

The next would show the truces. He woke up, eyes clear, brain at full capacity like he drank a pot of espresso. The dream was magnificent in size and clarity. He could still see the pictures clearly or at least some of them. Initially, he followed thousands of lines as if he was driving along with them. Then he hovered above and saw the intertwined pattern.

The mere memory made his heart beat wildly. He didn't know why. He was never so touched by a simple memory in his life.

Then he pulled out his cell phone and searched "What's the dream". His fingers trembled and he had to correct every word but the search results were nothing short of a joke. Wild conspiracy theories and daydreaming mixed. One went as follows, the Pentagon had microchips implanted in everyone and the dream was a malfunction. On another page, it was said that aliens wanted to communicate and yet others spoke of the Chinese or the Russians doing and spoke of God's message. Everything and everyone was to blame.

He deleted the search and tried something new, "Memories of the Dream". At least everyone agreed now. It was just like his own dream. Only the shape of the symbol seemed to be different for each person.

Alex tried to remember his dream yet again. Fragments came back and a special feeling flowed through him. It was faint, almost imperceptible, but at that moment an inner silence warmed his heart. The longer he concentrated, the better the feeling became.

Alex jumped out of bed and went to his desk. From there he took a pen and drew every line he remembered but he soon slammed the pen against his desk. He couldn´t get it right and the indescribable feeling disappeared.

He started from scratch. With every movement, this prudence ran through his body yet again. But then he made another mistake. In the end, he had written on each leaf of the block and each failed. He had to admit that he was running out of paper and had gotten hungry.

In the kitchen lay cold pancakes. The smell of coffee was long gone. What greeted him instead were the TV noises from the living room next door. Alex just had the first bite, as his mother came through the door. “My darling, are you all right?” Alex chewed while smiling at her. A little later he said, “Yes, of course.”

“It's so unusual that you miss breakfast. Did a dream bother you? I bet I can guess what it was. You have to know that I am a clairvoyant.” said his mother.

“Mom, I know the news. I also know what you dreamed tonight.” said Alex. His mother looked at him disappointed. "Let me have fun." They left their conversation at that.

Soon after, Alex was back at his desk. He tried once again to remember the pattern. He was satisfied with the result but good a bad headache in return. He had to spend the next few hours in bed, curled up under his covers. That’s how his day ended.

The unyielding noise of the alarm clock woke him up. Moments earlier he was dreaming and saw the symbol from above. It soothes his mind but now he´s awake. The alarm clock showed 8:30. The class had started 30 minutes and he had overslept for over an hour. First lesson math with Mr. Wanowski was not meant for him. Alex felt bad. He was not the kind of guy to miss class but the lingering memory of the dream calmed him down, as if to say, don´t worry. But why should he not worry? Alex was confused by himself.

He automatically went to pen and paper. His hands nearly flew as he drew and he was done, he had finished the last stroke!

What would happen next, boggled his mind. A bright light enveloped him, blindingly bright light. The next thing he realized was him standing in a strange square. It had the size of a gym, with dry earth beneath his feet and otherwise blue skies.

Alex didn't understand what happened. He looked around and tried to see where he was but a kind of curtain blocked his vision. It was like an empty sky that locked him up. Then a voice spoke in his head.

“Hello.

Do not be afraid. You are in the tutorial we have prepared. Take everything seriously because your world is about to change. The entire universe will change.

Complete the first floor and you can return to the place of your origin.”

When the last word was spoken, wooden racks with weapons appeared all over the square.

“Choose wisely. Try them out. You will be using them soon.”

What the heck was happening here? Alex started to believe in God. He looked around. Knives, morning stars, clubs, swords, the weapons went on endlessly. He stepped up to a rack and stared at the weapon in front of him. It was a longsword. The blade was impressive, elegant, yet deadly. He picked it up, balanced it, and imagined facing a mighty lion like a medieval knight. Then the long sword swung through the air. Alex felt like a Jedi.

But would a sword be enough for him? He started to doubt. Defeat animals? They were big and scary. His memories of the safari three years ago came back. They sat in the car, a lion stood near them. Then the animal was frightened or maybe there was no reason but he roared and his teeth hung right in front of Alex's face. This memory was life-like to this very day. Every time he flinches at the mere thought. Maybe he'll take an even bigger weapon with more reach.

In the end, he had looked at all the weapons. He favored the spears or long polearms. Most of all a specific glaive was stuck to his mind. Its long pole and curved, yet slender blade, made it a perfect weapon in Alex´s opinion. He got a spear and a short for the price of one. The glaive was comfortable in the hand and the handle gave him the distance to the enemy and the possibility of powerful attacks. Once he made his decision mentally, all racks and other weapons disappeared. Now all that remained was the glaive.

“The tutorial begins. You are preparing for the first floor. You can end the preparatory battles with the thought of escaping or giving up after the third challenge, but keep in mind that it will be a matter of life and death afterward. So take this chance. Fight. You will be healed of minor cuts and broken bones at the end of the preparatory battles. Do not hesitate.”

Before Alex could wonder what the words meant for him, a small, green figure appeared before him. Its face was grim and Alex had a strange suspicion. Could that be a goblin? He wondered.

Fortunately, it was unarmed but started to run at him.

Alex just held the blade in front of him but he didn´t know what to do. He hadn´t even realized what happened to him. Everything happened so fast. He scared the goblin away by poking towards him and that worked for some time. He cut the monster a couple of times but the wounds were shallow.

The glint in the goblin's eyes got madder with time. It suddenly jumped forward. Alex was caught by surprise and the goblin got behind the blade of the glaive.

His indecisiveness had made the fight more dangerous. The goblin's sharp teeth flashed before his face. Alex kept it away with the shaft. Fear quickened his pulse, breathing, and senses. He pushed the goblin away and punched it madly with the hard end of the glaive. He switched sides and started to cut the goblin. He did that until he realized that the goblin was dying. The goblin twitches from time to time and his eyes were half-closed. There was a last glimmer of life in its body and with a breath, it vanished.

Alex straightened up and looked at the small, green creature. His body and most importantly his spirit was exhausted. Blood was spurted all over the place but after a few seconds, the goblin and his blood disappeared without any hint of its existence left.

“Congratulations you defeated a goblin. The second challenge commences.”

Alex had a little breather. His body was fine even if though it was too much for his mind to handle. Then another goblin appeared in front of him. It held a dented short sword in its hands. Alex could see his face reflected in the steel before him.

This goblin didn't hesitate for a second but this time Alex knew not to hesitate. He used his range advantage and stabbed the goblin in the stomach. The steel dug into the soft flesh. The goblin held his sword tightly, but blood was already flowing from his mouth. Yet it did not want to yield. The eyes of the goblin showed unwillingness, even resentment, but they soon closed.

“Congratulations you defeated a goblin. The third challenge commences.”

Alex felt strangely powerful. If the feeling came from killing or had another origin, he was not sure. Now a wolf stood opposite of him. Alex felt ready for the bloodshed.

The wolf darted towards him with pure aggression. Alex was got nervous. The beast was truly fast. He lowered his body and held the glaive tightly in front of him.

The wolf jumped at him but the glaive penetrated deep into the animal's chest. Nonetheless, it bared its teeth and pushed forward so hard that the shaft slipped through Alex's hands until he held the glaive like a sword. Still, Alex held on. The wolf's saliva splashed down on him. Alex holds strong, his heart beating wildly.

“Congratulations you defeated a wolf. The fourth challenge commences.”

Now he felt even better. It was no mere feeling. He had truly become stronger and sharper. But his high vanished as a creature more beast than human-faced him. It walked on two legs and had otherwise the body of a wolf. The beast was taller than the goblins and a little taller than Alex himself, a little over 1,8 meters. The beast charged like all the others. At the last moment, just before it came into contact with Alex Glaive, it switched to four legs. It accelerated and jumped. Even worse it slipped under Alex's blade.

He had just enough time to strike the beast in desperation. In doing so, he injured the beast but cut shallow as he jumped to the side to avoid the attack. While he was still on the ground, the beast jumped at him again. Alex gathered his courage and he let out a scream. For a moment his mind and body were in harmony and he raised the glaive from the ground. As if in slow motion, he positioned his blade right in front of the beast's throat. Meanwhile, fear-filled him but he concentrated.

Then everything returned to normal speed and Alex only noticed how the glaive penetrated the beast. It fell and buried Alex under itself. Nothing happened. The beast didn´t move. It gurgled. Alex managed to roll the beast off. Nothing happened for a while and Alex enjoyed rested. A look towards the beast confirmed that it was dying.

“Congratulations you defeated a goblin. The fifth challenge commences.”

Now two wolves were facing him. Alex swallowed his spit. Two opponents worried him. That wolves usually hunted in packs, made it only worse. Yet he felt better than never before.

He decided to face the wolves. He tried to keep an eye on both of them but they soon surrounded him. A wolf launched an attack but withdrew at the last moment. That cunning beast. Meanwhile, the other wolf attacked for real. Alex repelled him with the end of his glaive.

With wild and desperate movements Alex managed to stop some of the wolves' attacks. He was constantly on the move, trying to distance himself from them. He soon became exhausted.

It didn't take long until the first wolf managed to bite into his thigh from behind. Alex hit the animal with the end of his glaive and managed to drive it away. But the other wolf was already about to attack. Soon both wolves bit into his leg. Alex used all his strength to not get dragged to the ground. He rammed his blade manically into one wolf and before the second one could escape he killed it too. They committed the attack and failed. That´s what they got.

Alex's legs were torn. He couldn't do anything else. Pain distorted his face and yet he enjoyed fighting. He wanted to see what was coming next.

“Congratulations you defeated two wolves. The sixth challenge commences. "

He saw his opponent and couldn't breathe. It was a giant. Not a real giant, but a green monster with a huge stature. It was 2.2 meters big and it was wide and muscular. Even well-trained men like his father or professional bodybuilders would look small next to it. Alex wanted to give up. His hands were shaking.

But a sense of courage kept him there. Something made him think he could win. He just wasn't sure how he was going to do it but his body knew it.

He trusted his feeling. He started to feel something deep inside him. Meanwhile, the monster ran towards him. The strange feeling was everywhere and nowhere at the same time as if it wasn't there. His time was limited.

He focused on the feeling and a wondrous strength arose. One attack, exactly one move he would make. If that doesn't work, then he'll have to give up.

He swung. His arms were strangely warm while doing so. Then the glaive cut through the monster. It was just like cutting butter. During this time the blade shined finely. The monster stopped immediately.

The glaive was sunk deep. He had cut through half the monster and severed the spine just below the rib cage. One arm flipped on the floor. Then the monster fell to the ground. It tore the glaive from Alex's hands. Despite everything, the monster twitched and was still alive, but Alex could see the blood and life force draining away.

All of Alex's strength seemed to have left his body. Never in his life had he felt so exhausted but that mattered little as he was victorious. Relief filled him. When he had recovered he pulled the glaive out with great effort and gave the creature the coup de grace.

“Congratulations you defeated an orc. The seventh challenge commences. "

Two orcs with fat clubs stood before him. The decision for Alex was very clear. Alex yelled loudly. "I give up."