"Ahh!" Allen continued to scream in the middle of the forest where he and Nera had just defeated the Draugr Wraith.

“What’s wrong?!” Nera yelled with heightened worry.

“It’s nothing. I should be fine.” Allen lied with a wince. One could see the truth he tried his hide as he tried to get up only to be hit by spasms of pain every time.

“You take me for an idiot? Let me see your arms.” Nera demanded while hoisting Allen over to a nearby tree. She leaned him next to it to keep him from falling again. Allen did not bother to protest anymore and spread his arms for her to examine.

“Hmm?” Unwrapping the bandages around Allen’s arms, revealing crimson scars that traced a tree-like pattern over his skin.

“I think these are side-effects from overusing Extract. A normal person’s body isn't meant to channel magical energy through it.”

“I..see. Maybe using Subtle Iron in short bursts instead of long ones would avoid that.”

Nera peered deep into his eyes with a steely glare. “Well, it’s your funeral if you go too far. You might end up becoming a resident of the graveyard yourself.”

Allen broke out into a cold sweat. “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind. You’ll visit my funeral if I mess up though, right?’

Nera heaved a sigh and stood up straight. “No chance. Let me know when you can get up and we’ll check on that blonde dude.”

‘She could at least try to fake some sympathy.’

“Roger.”

Before Allen could get that time, Nera heard the sound of the ground being trampled around them. Something was closing in on the two and it wouldn't take long to arrive.

"Be quiet," Nera warned.

"Huh? I'm not even making that much noise." Allen complained.

"Ugh, that's not what I'm talking about-" Nera cut herself off as a shadowy beast lunged out from the trees and slashed at her. She blocked with a gauntleted hand then kicked it apart with her steel-soled shoe. A small clear crystal fell to the ground innocuously.

"What was that?!" Allen then began noticing other similar creatures emerge from the foliage. They looked roughly humanoid but with uncannily long limbs that ended in sharp claws. Their bodies were thin and composed of pitch-black smoke. Allen's blood ran cold at the sight of the esoteric monsters.

"Those are Shades. They're a step down from Wraiths but show up more often in large numbers." Nera explained while scanning the perimeter. She counted seven of the beasts in total. "Normally, I could take on such a small amount of them easily...but not when protecting a sack of potatoes like you."

Allen winced but couldn't refute her words. It was agonizingly painful to move his arms even a few centimeters and the rest of his body wasn't feeling decent either. He wouldn't even be able to stand on his own two feet, much less fight.

"What are we going to do then?"

Nera clicked her teeth. "...The only sensible thing to do when stuck in a sack of potatoes." The slender gal bent down to sling one of Allen's arms over her shoulder. Allen groaned in pain from the shock but before Nera hoisted him off the ground, he reached out to grab the rune-like Dream Sculpture left by the Draugr.

'No way I'm going to go through all of this mess with nothing to show for it!'

Nera ran away from the swarm of Shades with Allen on her back as fast as she could. The monsters kept pace with her and were on the back of her heels.

"Dammit, I can't seem to lose them!"

As Nera yelled in frustration, Allen examined the forest for any path they could slip away from the Shades. An ethereal door akin to a stone tomb appeared in his vision. He tried blinking but it never disappeared.

"Hmm...hey, I think we should go that way." Allen pointed in the direction of the stone door.

"What makes you say that?"

"...Some gravestone-like door just appeared out of nowhere. With this timing, it must be a sign, right?" Allen assured unconvincingly.

"Going straight toward a grave doesn't sound like the best idea..." Nera vaulted forward to avoid a convergence of claws that nearly made mincemeat of them. "...But your instincts are pretty 50/50, so lead the way, Lackey."

"..Go it, you can count on me."

Allen pointed out where the door was but it steadily got farther away the closer they approached. Eventually, they suddenly had to make a quick turn threw a dense thicket of branches with the Shades nowhere to be seen behind them. Their guttural noises that sounded like flesh being torn apart were only signs they hadn't completely lost them.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"Huh, a dead-end?" Allen said out loud when he realized the door was no longer moving. Instead, it stopped on the side of a large, stone hill. When he described this to Nera, her brow furrowed.

"So, this door is just fixed to the side of the hill? Could it be a Gateway..." Nera murmured, half to herself.

"Would a Gateway be in a place like this?" Allen asked and gestured that he could at least stand on his own for now, even if limping. He pressed against the surface of the hill just beyond the vision he was seeing but it wouldn't budge. "If it was a Gateway, any reason why it isn't opening now?"

"...I don't know, not exactly an expert on this kind of stuff." Nera shrugged. "You should be grateful that I was even able to figure out what it was. "

Allen sighed and gave the vision itself another look. The stone itself didn't just look familiar, it was the same shade of teal as the Draugr's stone body. Allen looked down at the Sculpture in his hands to see it was in the same shape as the rune on the door.

"Hey, if you're going to use that nerd-brain of yours to figure something out, do it soon!" Nera urged as the Shades burst through the wall of branches they had come through. "Secret magical doors show up in myths all the time. Maybe it's locked by some sort of riddle or password."

"...A password? Nera, you're a genius!" Allen lauded as he traced the rune shared by his vision and the Dream Sculpture onto the side of the hill. Immediately, the stone gave way and the two were able to phase through it.

The other side of the door led to a vacuous crypt filled with rusted weapons and other decrepit objects. They ranged from rotten wooden crates that lined the walls of the area to corroded coins that littered the floor with lime green. The only source of light was the door that glowed teal behind them.

"Where are we?" Allen asked and Nera stayed silent. She had no answer to give. They walked deeper into the burial mound until they came across what they mistook for a corpse. A second glance was all they needed to see its true identity.

"A robot? What's an Automaton doing in this dingy place?" Nera voiced her own query and the Automaton immediately whirred to life. The blue lights that began to glow on its body showed the Automaton to have the appearance of a middle-aged man. It donned garbs that one would expect a guard of royalty to have worn in the Victorian Age.

" A young woman in her late teens with monochrome hair and violet eyes. Accessing data banks." The machine relayed. "Welcome Valkyrie, this is the monitoring terminal, Grettir, set in place to watch over this crypt. The time has come for the Grim Reaper Trial to commence." The Automaton's voice sounded human but it was completely monotone with none of the emotion a person should have. They were a such contrast to the flamboyant Automaton, Owlette.

"Hold on, if you know about the Grim Reaper Trial, can you tell us what it's the reason behind it and why all the Theurgist's Periapts were taken." Allen hurriedly asked.

"The Periapts were taken?" Nera's brow furrowed since Allen hadn't told her about his recent speculations.

"A Cratless of similar age to Valkyrie with no listing among the Grim Inheritors. Designation must be the Guardian for Valkyrie. Data pertaining to first question not found but second question is accepted." Grettir the Automaton rattled off Allen's descriptors just as it had with Nera. "The Theurgist's Periapt were all destroyed in preparation for the Trial. A new one must be made at the designated date."

"...The PerPeriaptsre destroyed? Why would they do that? Just what is this dumb trial for anyway?" Nera clutched the ancient clothes of the machine but nothing changed in its tone as spoke again.

"Initializing preset instructions. The world is made up of wishes layered on top of each other granted by the Spirits of the Netherworld with the hiding of magic from the mundane world being the result of these wishes."

While Allen contemplated Grettir's message in bewilderment, Nera steadily interrogated. "Cool story, but what do Spirits granting wishes have to do with the Grim Reaper Trial?"

"Spirits manifest the imagination of humanity and that includes both hopes and fears. For every wish granted, a curse is inflicted and humans have cursed each other since the very beginning. That is why this Grim Reaper Trial will begin in this city."

Allen recalled what he read about fortunes being bestowed by the Spirits. This must be an extension of that."...That still doesn't explain things though. Where do Spirits come into play?"

The Automaton moved its rusted frame to face Allen. "It should already be clear, Guardian. The Grim Pieces are just parts of a contract with the Greater Spirit you humans call the Grim Reaper."

The two recoiled from the machine, both lost in thought. If the Grim Reaper truly was death in an ethereal form then they were involved in something much bigger than had even imagined.

"C'mon, you tin can. Tell us who is behind all of this before things get out of hand!" Nera yelled but Grettir simply replied that it did not have access to that information.

"My directive is to alert you two to your own placement in this matter and deliver you to my operator. Now, the time has come for you both to have your own directives implanted into you." With a loud creak, the Automaton raised from the pile of rocks it sat on and held up its palm which crackled with electricity.

"No way, if you can't tell us what we want then we're just going to leave you here," Nera told off the Automaton. A metallic hand then blocked her field of view. She leaped back in time to avoid it grasping her head in its vice grip.

"Watch out!" Allen called out as Nera was chased down by the surprisingly agile robot. To their horror, large bat-like wings and extra arms sprung from its body.

"Valkyrie, you must be given your directive to follow the path designated for you. The method will no cause no physical harm and simple overwrite your current goals and mindsets to align more closely with my operator's." Grettir monotonously informed like the machine it was.

Nera tried to keep up by knocking away its limbs and gaining as much distance as possible. She was already at her limit from fighting the Draugr and running from the Shades. Despite that, she managed to break off two of its rusted arms.

"Heh, gotcha you rusted-" Nera's eyes widened as two new arms emerged and pinned hers to the wall. The Automan's remaining arms blurred as they reached for her face with its electrified palms.

"Open! Gravesinker!"

A stone axe erupted from the chest of Grettir.

"Allen..."

The young man pulled the axe out from the Automaton and it fell to the ground. Smoke coming from its mouth and its glowing lines dimming. Strangely, there was no outward damage to its metallic body itself. Allen held the handaxe in one hand and a Craft Card in the other.

"...So, this one can phase through things. I was just intending to knock it down." Allen voiced almost remorsefully before leaning against the wall of the crypt. His face was drenched with sweat and his stomach felt like bile would issue forth any moment. "This Automaton, what if it had been one like Owlette? Is it possible for machines to have souls of their own in the first place?"

Nera gently wiped some of the dirt from Allen's face. "It's not and they don't, so don't worry about it. What happened is that you saved me from whatever brainwashing it was trying to do. You did the right thing, Allen."

"...Yeah, you're right."