The tower's blackness welcomed him as if it was a familiar cloak, settling around him as he walked. Jay searched for any signs of magic. His Eyes of the Collector claimed that there was no magic in the area, though his Ever-Watching Eye stat led him to believe that there was. A mixture of all five types. Jay turned Eyes of the Collector off. It seemed to be wrong at times, if there was nothing to 'collect' around.

  The darkness stayed, not oppressive, but not light either. Jay kept walking, the darkness never giving way. A set of stairs soon met his feet, and Jay continued, unable to see anything. Then his face met a wall and Jay started climbing. He climbed for a long time, his arms and legs starting to shudder from exhaustion as he went straight up the wall. Jay refused to stop, however. He wouldn't give up until his body physically couldn't go on any further. Then the darkness gave in to light, and he saw moonlight, shining onto a circular room, which looked like a colosseum of some kind. He heard Amon's voice just before he entered.

  So, you just have to fight things? This seems like a boring first trial. Have at them!

  Wait. I was in another trial before this. I think it was perseverance. I had to walk for a while, and then climb stairs, and then climb a sheer wall until it let me through, into here. You didn't know?

  He received an image of Amon shaking her metaphorical head. Nope.

  Jay walked into the center of the colosseum, spectators all around him watching him. The sand under his feet was already slightly bloody, the entire ground tinted red. Someone Jay couldn't see made an announcement. "Here we have Jay, the newest applicant for Onyx. Panel of judges, this is Jay. Jay, that is the panel of judges, previous Onyxes. They and they alone will judge whether you're allowed to pass to the top of the tower."

  The entire stand of spectators stared at Jay, not one of them cheering. Some were smiling while others were staring into the distance, but not one cheered. This wasn't a simulated stand of spectators-they were the judges. "First fight, Jay versus champion."

  A hole opened in the solid wall, just wide enough for the contestant to walk through. Moonlight bathed the arena, letting Jay see the suit of armor enter. He looked up. How was there a moon if he wasn't at the top of the tower?

  The announcer spoke again. "For this contest, both competitors are limited to a single set of weapons, which cannot be changed out, and one or the other will win after three hits are scored on the other's body. No forms of magic are allowed."

  Amon summoned twin shortswords, already knowing Jay's preferences. He grabbed them, feeling their familiar hilts in his palms. Even though they were made of liquid silver, their hilts always felt comfortable somehow. He stepped forward to meet the champion, who was wielding the same weapons. Dual shortswords. They clashed multiple times, testing each other. Jay could somehow no longer feel any fatigue from the first test, back at his peak for this next one. The champion seemed to use a more bulky, offensive style, while Jay danced around blows, his hits faster, though lighter. He launched into the Elemental Forms. Water came first, letting him bend nearly in half backwards, suddenly whipping back up due to Gravity, before launching three successive strikes with Lightning.

  The construct fell apart, the three strike goal completed. The armor sunk into the sand. The crowd grumbled as the announcer sounded again, with a surprised voice. "That test... was supposed to be of skill. You weren't supposed to be as good as the construct, which, by the way, is given all the memories and experiences of the Onyxes who mastered whatever weapons its using. For you to be... better, and to know the Elemental Forms at such a young age... is... a surprise. You may continue, but know we aren't counting this test for or against you."

  Jay nodded. "Second fight. Protector versus horde."

  The colosseum expanded, a massive field suddenly replacing the sand. A village appeared behind Jay. "Protect the village, defeat the horde," The announcer said.

  Jay nodded. He walked into the village. "Hey, you!," he shouted at a random passerby. "What level are the monsters in a horde?"

  The announcer answered for the man. "Based on your tiny level, probably around eight or seven."

  Jay spoke at the sky. "I would recommend twenty or thirty."

  The announcer didn't reply. Jay sighed, walking to the front of the village. He waited for the monsters to approach. When they did, his Eye stat reported movement to both sides of the village as well. Jay made a quick round of the village, seeing that it was fully surrounded, monsters on all sides. The announcer hadn't taken his suggestion, and had left the monsters at level eight. Jay sighed. He couldn't say he hadn't warned the announcer. He walked into the center of the village, activating his Flowering Domain. Making it fully encircle the village and more, he put alarm flowers at the edge of his Domain. If he didn't have flowers active, his Domain costed a pittance, unlike Summon the Ocean, which costed far more in Mana than Flowering Domain did in Dominion.

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  His alarm flowers suddenly erupted into a cacophony of sound, and Jay summoned his maneaters and launched Summon the Ocean, making its outskirts an incredible depth while keeping the center, where the village was, near the surface. He'd never tried this before, so he hoped it worked.

  Everything occurred exactly as intended, the monsters suddenly dying, never getting close to the village. Jay gasped as he used up a fourth of his Aura and Mana all at once, but he knew the next trial would replace his lost reserves. The announcer spoke again. "I... suppose I should have increased their levels. I assumed it was arrogance. This trial will also not be counted for or against you, and... we've all decided that you should just skip our trials and be assigned a different set of trials, sponsored by... a group of benefactors."

  Jay raised his eyebrows. They were taking money? Really?

  The area around him shifted, and he was suddenly sitting at a very long dining table, with other beings sitting there as well. He was sitting at the foot of the table, nearest to the door. Across from him, at the head, was a being that emitted immense power. "Who are you, and why did you want me here?," Jay asked.

  Immediately one of the beings turned to him. They were wearing clothes that Jay could sense were weaved out of Light. "Such insolence. He should be purified and thrown to the dogs. We're the ones asking the questions."

  Jay ignored him. "I would like an answer from someone with a brain, preferably. Unless none of you have a brain."

  The man at the head of the table still didn't speak. A woman next to him did, however. She had perfectly black eyes and wore clothing that reminded Jay of the night. "We are gods. We wanted you here because of your... weird circumstances. The rest of them are going to pressure you into accepting, whether you want to or not, because of our status as gods, and then you'll do whatever they want you to for the rest of your life."

  Jay smiled at her. "Thank you for your honesty. I'm assuming goddess of Night, the Stars, and the Moon?"

  She laughed, ,a tinkling laugh that almost seemed to create pinpricks of light around her. "Good guess."

  The man wearing clothes of light stood up. "Now, see here-"

  Jay's eyes hardened and he stared at the man with a killing gaze. "I've killed gods before. Sit down."

  Wait. When had he killed gods before? Memories suddenly popped into Jay's head. He saw himself standing above the God of Evil, his spear struck through the god's head. The god was still screaming, slowly dying. The God of Light and Purity, for Jay knew what he was now, sat down. The man at the head of the table spoke. "Even if you've killed gods before, child, they are minor compared to us. Work for us, or you will find your life a hell."

  "I killed the God of Evil. Is that minor? Do I have any supporters among the gods?"

  The Goddess of Night smiled at him, signifying her support, but no one else made any comments. "The night is on your side," she said.

  The man at the head glared at her. Jay realized he hadn't made out any details of the man's attire or features, even with his evolved stat.

  Jay nodded at her. "Thank you. Seeing how I'm not dead, I'm assuming that the gods have rules to follow?"

  Night nodded. "We do."

  "And one more question. Why are you supporting me?"

  "The Night is a time for monsters, true. However, I'm also a goddess of the Moon, which is anathema to evil, and the Stars are always lights of hope within the sky. I can sense true good in you. I support you both because of my personal values and the values of the things I represent. Remember-the Night isn't just a time of darkness and evil. Darkness is also protection, a cloak against harsh light."

  Jay nodded at her, turning back to the table. "Anything else?"

  The man at the head turned to Jay. "If you accept, we will make you a god when you die."

  Jay immediately turned it down. "I'll become a god while I'm still alive, thank you very much. If that's it, I'll be going now."

  "You can't leave until we let you," someone wearing robes which instinctively reminded Jay of Pain quietly said.

  The doors behind Jay opened and a newcomer entered the room. "He can!," Amon said, a lady fully made of silver liquid, wearing a dress of the same substance. It flowed as she moved.

  "How are you here?," Jay asked.

  "They summoned you here, and I'm bonded to you, so I just kinda ran around until I found you," Amon said, creating a chair for herself before sitting down.

  Night smiled at her. "The last Spirit of Eternity, eh?"

  Amon nodded back. Jay immediately noted a few eyes pulsing with what appeared to be greed. "The Night protects you as well, child."

  The man wearing the robes of Pain stood up. "Even though we have rules, I can cause you infinite pain while staying within those rules. If you don't agree, you'll be trapped within infinite pain."

  Jay ignored him. Amon didn't feel pain, and him? Jay honestly believed he wouldn't care very much, based on how he'd fought the root mage without a heart made of his own flesh. He felt the man's pain impact him, but he walked out with Amon, the pain much less than when he didn't have a heart. Waving goodbye to Night, he strode out of the room. Instantly, he was in front of a closed door. Jay heard a voice. "When's he going to finish? That was far longer than my trial," Diamond's voice said.

  Jay grabbed the door, ripping it open. Stepping through, he found himself at the top, standing on the original platform next to Diamond, whose head immediately snapped over to Jay. "We have a bit of ceremony left. Applicant, you have traversed the tower. This gem I hold is rightfully yours. Would you agree?"

  Words appeared in Jay's head. "I agree to both this burden and honor."

  Diamond raised a hand. In the center of the platform, the embedded diamond raised itself out of the ground, returning to its owner. Diamond grabbed it. Then he held out a necklace with an Onyx hanging on the end. Jay approached, grabbing the gem. Then he held it in place as Diamond raised both his hand and the necklace to his head, putting it on his neck. It shifted to be the perfect size and shape for him before Diamond let go. The tower started descending smoothly, without any jerks or rough movements. Jay marveled at it, the tower descending silently until the platform was on the ground once again. Jay walked in front of the crowd and opened his hand, letting the crowd see the Onyx. It illuminated the entire crowd without light, somehow simply letting everyone see as if it was day.

  Diamond stepped alongside him, putting a hand over his shoulder. "WE HAVE A NEW ONYX!,"

  The crowd cheered.