Red.

For several minutes, that was all I could see.

A fast gush of wind traveled through my body as my hair went all over. The sweat I was accumulating on my forehead slowly vanished—not because I wasn’t scared or nervous.

Then, something that could only be described as the void came. Years of watching movies and TV hadn’t prepared me for what it was, only a small idea of what we thought it had to be.

All the speed making my body travel through space was suddenly replaced by a shivering and silent cold. The pores of my skin opened, and everything around me seemed to dissipate. I tried to move my hands, but to no avail.

This is worse than an elevator. My stupid brain muttered, and then panic started to settle. It was as if I was enveloped in a thin layer of some strange, fabric. The pinnacle of claustrophobia reached me when I least expected it, but before I could start to despair, I could see again.

At least I could see anything that wasn’t the red color.

I opened and closed my eyes frantically as the bright hue slowly faded away. My fingers moved, then my hand. I touched my face, searching for wounds but found nothing. Below me, the ground felt plain, and when I raised my feet, I noticed the floor was metallic.

I finally saw my black leather shoes, then my hands. It was as if I was in a theater with the light totally focused on me. My body and the ground below were visible, but everything besides it was completely wrapped in utter darkness.

“What the hell,” I muttered instinctively, trying to make sense of the strange situation.

Oddly enough, I got a reply.

Far, far away in the distance, I heard a clicking sound. A light had just been lit.

Along with the bright hue, a figure appeared beneath it. It was a woman, an athletic one, wearing matching purple gym outfits. I couldn’t see her clearly since she was at least one hundred yards away from me, but I could hear her scream.

“Where am I? Help!”

I thought about replying, but before I could do it, I heard the clicking sound really close to me. I turned my face to the right, following the noise, and discovered pretty quickly the new person was at my side. Or at least I thought it was a person.

Beside me, a bulking figure of at least seven feet tall loomed over me. Its skin was crimson as blood, and its body was ripped like that of a bodybuilder. The thing wore only leather pants, which gave me plenty of opportunities to see its goat hooves and knees bent in the wrong direction.

Its torso was the most humanlike part of the creature; long arms with mighty biceps adorned its silhouette, but when I contemplated its face, my heart skipped several beats.

The creature possessed a long beard adorning its red face, and when it opened its mouth, I saw a line of pointed yellow teeth. Its eyes were like those of a snake, and it had no ears at all, only two small holes on each side. Atop its head, two circular horns expanded from the extremities of its forehead and ended near its jawline.

Its eyes seemed to be attracted to my examination. We locked gazes, and finally sweat dripped from my forehead. My fight-or-flight instincts took over, and I looked at my surroundings with the corner of my eyes, ready to find a weapon or an escape route without making any abrupt movements.

The monster grunted, a deep noise rising from the depths of its throat. Its head twisted to the side as if pondering the best way to kill me.

Now! I screamed to myself as I rushed to run toward the gym girl. With no weapons in sight by best chance to defeat the creature was having someone to help.

The monster followed, but then I heard a loud crack, and my face was swollen with pain. I had just hit something.

A similar but louder sound came from my side, and I noticed the demon had just crashed against an invisible wall, just like me.

I shook my head, shoving the headache away, and contemplated the demon banging its own in a strange and seemingly ineffective way to massage its temples.

I grinned from ear to ear. The absurdity of the situation was simply too much to take. This seven-feet-tall demon seemed so fucking frustrated that it couldn’t murder me that I had to laugh.

The monster stared at me with murder all over its gaze.

Then, it spoke.

“Kruz'shar tilen, vornik'dra!”

“What?!” I asked involuntarily, feeling the walls of the invisible box around me.

I’m in a small invisible box. Shit! Shit!

Suddenly, a demon didn’t seem like that much of a problem. How stupid can the human brain be? I looked at my palms, already starting to sweat, as other lights began to be lit all around.

That distracted me enough from my phobia.

I saw humans of all shapes and forms appearing, but for each one of them, three demons followed suit. They were also very different from each other. It was quite easy to distinguish the females from the males since they followed some basics of human anatomy as well.

It seemed like the bastard at my side wasn’t the only murderous one among them. More than one tried to jump on their neighbors, but a good number remained quietly in their cubicles.

While humans were screaming, desperate with the strange situation, most of the demons—after realizing they were locked—crossed their arms and sat on the ground to wait for whatever was about to happen.

When the light on my other side clicked on, I was surprised again. I was by no means a small man by Earth measures, but this ‘Partial Integration’ was making me feel like one.

Another seven-feet-tall humanoid appeared to my left. Their long hair was as dark as night and shimmered with the light above, their skin pale, and they wore shiny light armor.

Their big yellow eyes were humanlike, except they looked a little bigger than most humans. The nose was pointy, and the lips were thin and colored a deep purple. It was hard to say if they were male or female, but their pointed ears definitely made me sure they weren’t human.

“Lira, falen,” a feminine voice escaped her lips as she looked at me with a smirk stamped on her face.

“You’re an elf,” I muttered.

The strange elf-like being raised one eyebrow and leaned toward me.

"Ilva? Niri felna lir."

“No shit,” I replied, having no idea what the hell she was trying to say, but glad one of my neighbors wasn’t a frenzied murderous being.

It took more time for the room to be filled with elves, demons, and humans. The place seemed to have no end, and after a couple of minutes, I couldn’t see the lines anymore. The only way I knew people were still arriving was the far but constant clicking sounds of the lights being turned on.

After several minutes, the sounds stopped. By now, my heart was about to exit my mouth. I couldn’t control the urge to look at my surroundings over and over. Soon, this will be over. It can’t take longer.

My eyes found the giant demon at my side again, and I saw him looking at me with a grin from ear to ear. As our eyes locked, he started laughing as if understanding what was going on with me and thinking it was the funniest joke he had ever seen.

A cold shiver ran down my spine as I lingered in that stare. I didn’t give my body permission to turn away. I wasn’t going to be seen as weak. I learned pretty quickly in my life that this is exactly what bullies are searching for: people who bend to their forced authority.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“You better be ready when we leave these boxes.” I knew very well he couldn’t understand a word that came out of my mouth, but I saw him raise one of his fat eyebrows.

His smile shortened, and his guttural voice emerged again.

"Thrak'shar tilen, dor'vaxis!"

I heard a knocking on my other side and found the elf woman leaning toward me. I looked back at the demon, but he was with his arms crossed, gazing at the horizon.

“Pussy,” I muttered, gazing back at the elf.

She smiled and waved one hand forward and then back, breathing in the same pattern. She wants me to do the same.

I had nothing to lose. Honestly, breathing techniques always helped me, but it was hard to think about them when your brain is screaming for you to exit the tight space.

I inhaled and exhaled at her rhythm, holding my breath when she held hers, until my heart was finally beating in a more steady way.

“Thank you.” I let the last breath escape my lungs as I watched her expression turn into a grin again.

She nodded, seemingly understanding the meaning of my words. Her gaze traveled to the far horizon, and I followed it.

Another clicking sound—light and just before my eyes stood a fellow human. He seemed confused as he scanned his surroundings.

He was in his mid-twenties, well-dressed, but his face was covered in sweat, and his eyes darted to everything around him.

“This can’t be real,” he muttered, then looked at me. “Dude, you’re really here?”

His pupils were as big as his irises. This man was high as fuck.

“Try to relax, man.” It was all I could say before, in the distance, the darkness seemed to take on a new shape.

Floating above the last line of beings, a red dot soared into the void. It wavered in all directions, shining more brightly with each passing second. Two hands emerged from the portal and started pulling it up and down. The circle opened until it had at least seven feet in diameter. The most gorgeous woman I had ever seen exited the portal in a hush.

Somehow, even with four arms, her body looked like a curvaceous model, wearing some sort of black dress that hugged all over her curves. I heard more than one gasp from the crowd but wasn’t sure if it was due to the fact that she looked like an succubus or the fact that she had two pairs of arms and two pairs of eyes on her face.

It was like looking at a video game character that went through the hands of a very horny modder. She looked absurd, but I had just been threatened by a demon and calmed down by an elf. Who was I to say something was absurd?

She cleared her throat, and when she spoke, her voice reached all our ears.

“Alright, alright, alright!” she started in a cheerful tone. “My name is Ilyshiara, and I’ll be the hostess of this year’s Ascension Games. We’re more than glad that you all volunteered for our program. The transmission will start soon enough, but we have time for a quick briefing. Who is eager to see a presentation?”

When no one replied and the crowd started to erupt in mutterings, she cleared her throat again.

“Not the best crowd, I see. Right, I’ll just show it to you.”

Just beside Ilyshiara, a giant screen appeared. The demons and elves seemed particularly interested in that, as they started to gasp and point fingers as the images began to appear.

Looks like they don’t have TVs in their world.

First, several landscapes started to be shown. All seemed to be very recognizable to me. There were rivers, oceans, forests, and cities. Some seemed more Earth-like, while others were nothing short of alien. Giant, almost transparent trees adorned some of the forests, while other cities seemed to be built inside volcanoes with lava surprisingly not burning the houses.

Welcome to the Partial System Integration.

You are one of the few who decided to fight for yourself and your world.

Your homes are now part of the Intergalactic Syndicate, and we’ll slowly integrate your culture into ours. This will not be an easy process, however. Unfortunately, several of your kin will perish.

The landscapes were replaced by images of war, natural disasters, and sickness spreading, and then they showed planets being reshaped while strange and gargantuan machines removed something from deep inside their cores.

Resources are scarce throughout the multiverse, but fret not! Your worlds were chosen because they are rich and ready to help make all worlds more sustainable.

That’s where you come in.

There’s no place for everybody.

The images started to portray strange species fighting. One orc-like monster dismembered a giant octopus, while a lion humanoid impaled a unicorn. All these creatures killing each other rushed to the distance after defeating their enemies, climbing stairs that seemed to appear out of thin air.

The fate of the people who remain on your planets have yet to be decided. Some will be reallocated to a new world or spatial station, while others will—unfortunately—die in severe pain. You, on the other hand, don’t depend on destiny!

They showed the orc-like creature fighting a giant snake and defeating it with what seemed to be a giant fireball. The reptile shrieked in pain and then collapsed to the ground as the words “#1 Tower Champion” appeared above the orc’s head.

Next, the images showed other orc-like creatures eating a lavish banquet and then sleeping on comfortable yet strange stray beds. It all looked like a very expensive yet corny company internal advertisement.

If you succeed at the games we prepared for you and conquer the towers, the people you love and several others will benefit from it. The hard truth is that most of you will die before the seventh tower is conquered, but it’s your choice to make this death worth it or not.

We’ll grant you power to face adversity and will watch as you thrive in the challenges we so meticulously crafted to bring the most out of you and to entertain our watchers.

The image changed to several different species watching on TVs, tablets, and floating screens as the orc from before climbed the tower and defeated the giant snakes. Their eyes were mesmerized by the images. Some of them cheered while others cursed and stomped their feet on the ground with anger.

The individual or group that conquer three out of the seven towers first will be the winner of the Partial Integration, and a champion will be decided among the survivors.

Climb the tower and entertain the viewers.

Remember: There’s no place for the weak in the multiverse.

“Very good, isn’t it?” the woman soaring in the sky asked, her tone one of real surprise.

“Get me out of here!” A human voice came from the distance.

“I want to go home!” Another one followed.

Other elves and demons also joined the outcry. My mind warned me that such a decision was most likely not that wise.

“Sasha?! Kayle?! Thomas?! Dude, this isn’t right! I don’t want this anymore. This is the worst trip ever! Please take me out of here!” The man’s voice increased in desperation with each word. He truly believed he was in some session of LSD or whatever. Poor bastard.

“Hey, calm down. It will pass.” I tried to say to him, but he kept screaming.

Ilyshiara sighed deeply and let her shoulders fall. She followed it with the click of one of her fingers.

Red light erupted from the dark sky. The lightning branched in several directions, and one of them struck dangerously close to me.

It hit the stoned guy right at the top of his head.

I watched as his hair burned, his skin melted, and his skull turned to jelly. The effect traveled through his entire body in a fraction of a second. In an instant, he was nothing but a mound of flesh with cracks of bone scattered here and there.

My gag reflexes activated, but I controlled it.

Gasps erupted from the crowd, and with it, Ilyshiara screamed in a deep and uncharacteristic tone.

“Enough!” Her voice traveled through the infinite room, and a wave of calm fell over me. It was like dew falling over my head early in the morning. My eyes became heavy and I wanted to sit on the ground. “That’s better,” she only muttered, but it sounded as if she was in the box right next to me.

“I have a couple of fun facts!” She returned to her cheerful tone, simply ignoring that she had just killed several people. “Only 20% of humans pressed yes, while 30% of the Myriads did and an impressive 50% of the Arahaktar! That’s our record for both the lowest and highest participation yet. Congratulations, my red friends. Humans, you’re going to have to work extra hard to prove yourselves.”

She sounded like a reassuring teacher, and that left me with a sour taste. I had indeed volunteered and was glad I could actually fight for the ones I loved, but it didn’t change the fact that I hated being patronized.

“Another interesting fact! This is the Ascension Games with the most gods signed on as sponsors! Besides the normal sponsors from all over the multiverse, more deities will be available to take you under their wings—some literally,” she chuckled, “so go ahead and do whatever it takes to stand out! The proving grounds will start in a moment. Pick from the options and prepare to fight!”

As soon as her words reached my ears, the world turned red again. It was as if my invisible box had been thrown into the sky and then fell again, but I felt no pain or impact.

I looked to my sides, and when my vision finally adjusted, I had a small desk before me. I stood in a large corridor with several lamps on each side. It looked like a medieval dungeon beneath a castle, and none of my previous neighbors were by my side.

Above the small desk, a single word floated with a countdown beneath it.

Choose

Time remaining: 10 seconds.

Above the small table, fiveinsignias the size of my hand lay. One of them had two axes crossed with the words ‘warrior’ beneath it, the second was a scepter with ‘mage,’ the third was a single dagger with ‘rogue,’ the fourth was a staff with twisted snakes with ‘healer’ and the last one was a bow with the obvious ‘archer’ beneath it.

Is this like an RPG? I looked at the names and insignias. What to choose?

I normally play video games as a mage, but this isn’t a fucking video game. Archer can be safe, but I would be weak in close combat and I have no idea what enemies will be around. Warrior seems safe enough, while Rogue…

Choose

Time remaining: 5 seconds

Choose, choose… What do I choose?

My mind immedietly noticed that something had been left out.

Wait, there’s nothing saying I can only choose one!

I moved both of my hands and grabbed two insignias.