The voice goes silent, leaving the group staring at each other in a confused manner. Though simple, the instructions were far too vague to give them a good idea was what was happening or what they were meant to do, leaving them more lost than they were before. It was clear enough that they were meant to survive, however there was no immediately obvious danger around them. Would simply standing in place until the time passed suffice? Of course not. Such an assumption was ridiculous. Mercy did not exist in this place, each individual was forced to prove their own worth regardless of their heritage. Though it was unknown to the participants, this test was designed to separate the wolves from sheep.
With that in mind, the hunt began. As expected, there were already few who had seen the true purpose of this test and did not hesitate to act.
A piercing scream cuts through the silence as Ambros whips his head around, along with most of the people present, a rather gruesome scene greeting his gaze. A relatively well dressed man was straddling another, pinning him to the ground with his fingers on his face, his eyes to be exact. As the one on the ground screamed in agony, the other continued pressing his fingers into his eyes, digging deeper into them, fully intending on gouging them out completely. The others stood in horrified silence, shocked with what would soon be murder taking place in front of them. The screams become strained, the conclusion to this situation drawing near. With a final exclamation, the man's body goes limp as blood squirts from his eyes, painting the aggressor with the blood of his victim. With a single action, all the participants were reminded of the simple nature of this place, it was all based on survival of the fittest. Either kill or be killed.
Ambros stares at the blood splattered man with a blank expression. Words alone could not describe what he was feeling at this moment, his heart pounding against his chest as if it was trying to escape from his body. It was his first time witnessing death in such a painfully straightforward and brutal manner. No, it was his first time witnessing death at all. It was a jarring experience, as if his entire body was dunked into icy water as the cold reality of the situation set in. The man rises, wiping the blood off onto his pants as he glances around, his eyes meeting Ambros'. Though neither exchanged any words, Ambros knew he was looking into the eyes of a predator and he was nothing more than his prey. Breaking contact, Ambros glances downwards as he prays that he did not catch the man's attention, hoping he would not end up like the body on the ground.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
The first death acted as a catalyst, provoking extreme responses in all present. As if the first domino in a row of many had been knocked over, the participants began to turn on one another, lunging at those closest to them, their desperation clear to all those present. They were far past the point of reason, the only thought in their minds being survival. Ambros was snapped out of his trance by the sound of rapid footsteps, quickly growing louder. Spinning his head around, Ambros has no time to react as a fist slams into his face, a crunching sound echoing out as he stumbles backwards in a dazed manner. W-Was he just punched? A sharp stinging spreads from his nose as he raises a shaky finger, the warm stickiness of fresh blood painting his finger. He stares at his attacker, his vision blurry, as he sees a vaguely humanoid shape running towards him once again. Ambros knew he would not be able to move, his legs weak from the stunning attack, closing his eyes tight as he braced for more pain. Yet it never came. As his eyes flutters open, what greets him is the sight of Nero straddling the man, repeatedly slamming his head against the ground in a frenzied manner. A pool of blood slowly grows beneath the now fallen man's head as Nero walks towards Ambros, a concerned expression adorning his face.
"Can you walk?"
Ambros meekly nods, silent from the sudden shock of the whole situation, his injury clearly worsening his quickly deteriorating mental condition. Nero grabs his arm as he begins to quickly walk away from the escalating conflict, practically dragging Ambros behind him.
"Good. We need to get away from here. At least until the time is up."
Nero had no intentions of pursuing combat, though he would hesitate to do so if needed. Instead, his priority was survival and although taking Ambros along with him would reduce those chances, it would be practical to have at least one person by his side that could be trusted, a rarity in this world. As the two began running, a sharp sound echoes out, piercing through the participant's ears. The clearing of a throat was heard once again as a voice echoed out.
"Congratulations to whoever's still alive! Please step through the doorway if you would like to keep that way."
The first test had finally come to a conclusion, bodies littering the ground with pools of blood watering the grass. This was only the first test yet it had these many casualties. Perhaps this was a sign for what was yet to come. Quite the ominous one at that.