The forest had an eerie level of quiet, no wind blew, no beast made noise, and the only thing Jelani could hear was the sound of his shoes crunching leaves. His senses were on high alert, every nerve crackling with tension. Jelani was used to taking charge, to facing challenges head-on. But this... this was different. The unknown threats lurking in the shadows of this dark forest set his teeth on edge.
"I have no idea what to expect out here, so I need to keep up my guard," Jelani thought, his jaw clenched tight. He moved at a light jog, weaving through the trees while watching blind spots where something could jump out at him. He couldn't help how often he looked back at the same spots, his instinct for self-preservation warring with his desire to appear strong and in control.
Looking up at the canopy was like watching a web of branches and leaves interlock in a contorted mess of arms. Spotted across many branches were spherical cones the size of a basketball layered in a thick grey scale-like exterior. "Really hope those are regular cones and not eggs," Jelani thought, now imagining some grotesque winged beast emerging from them hungry for food. The idea of being caught off-guard, of being vulnerable, made his skin crawl.
As if drawn by his thoughts, a cone above him suddenly snapped from the stem connecting it to the tree. Jelani's reflexes kicked in, and he took a few quick steps back as the cone dropped and smacked into the ground, throwing up dirt. Where it landed was a small crater, and Jelani could see the rocks under it were smashed into gravel.
"Oh hell nah…” Jelani spoke in a hushed tone. “bro, really? That was heavy enough to crack somebody's skull open." Jelani leaned in for a closer look on impulse before his common sense kicked in and jerked him backwards. He berated himself internally for the momentary lapse in judgment. Showing weakness, even to himself, was not something he was comfortable with.
Jelani looked up again but couldn't see any signs of others about to drop. It seemed this would be the first thing he'd need to keep track of. Random falling crater-forming cones were definitely going to be stressful to watch, but so far, that was his first near death experience in over 30 minutes of moving. He just needed to be vigilant. He decided that now would be a good time to test that threat radar again.
He checked his peripheral vision and focused on the radar icon. It activated, and the edges of his vision blurred ever so slightly to create a focus area directly in front of him. He looked down at the fallen cone, but it wouldn't highlight or display details. "I guess non-living things aren't highlighted, or maybe it'll detect when it's hurtling towards me. Seems fair that it would be able to detect projectiles," Jelani thought. "I'll just keep this on and see what I can find out."
The land ahead of him was starting to slope upwards, which let Jelani know he was starting to ascend the mountain. Suddenly, to the southeast about 100 or so feet, he heard a few simultaneous snaps in the distant canopy which were followed by muffled yells. He decided to get close enough to see what caused the commotion. It sounded like someone may have been hit by one of the cones, so he wanted to see how much damage they could really do.
He approached, making sure to avoid fallen leaves and twigs, and focused ahead of him through an opening in some trees. Lying on the ground to their side was a trial taker, a young Latino man with a gray hoodie on, the back of his head caved in next to a fallen duo of cones. Standing around the body were a short guy in his early 30s with his hands on his head in surprise, while a woman in a bloodied nurse outfit was on her knees, staring empathetically and teary-eyed with a hand on the fallen man. "He saved me. He fucking saved me," she sobbed.
The scene ahead was shitty but it didn't get to him. Death was waiting on all of them and the purpose of this trial in his mind was to prove they were worthy of an extension. He wasn't sure if this was the first death, but looking at the body was a stark reminder that this was just the beginning. A sound like crunching leaves behind him caught his attention, and he swung around to find nothing there except darkness.
"Nothing's there. Don't start acting all scared now; I'm sure there's going to be worse ahead," he thought to himself, trying to quell the rising unease in his gut. As much as he wanted to project strength, to be the unshakeable force he always strived to be, the reality of the situation was starting to sink in. People were dying here, and he could be next if he wasn't careful.
"This entity may seem sensible, but I won't get it twisted," Jelani reasoned, his internal voice hard and cold. "It designed a trial with the goal of testing if we are worthy and fully intends to let us die if we can't face these obstacles." He paused, a flicker of doubt crossing his mind. "It's fucked up in a way to do that to people who were already on death's row, but we accepted the terms."
Jelani felt numb at this cold assessment, but it's what he needed to focus on. He couldn't afford to let empathy or fear cloud his judgment. He was here for a reason – to gain power, to take control of his destiny. If others fell along the way... well, that was the nature of the trial.
He decided to continue forward, feeling he had already wasted enough time acting on impulse. Keeping his eyes moving back and forth between the canopy and all the shadows around him as he ascended deeper was getting tiring. He'd made a good amount of distance by staying at an even jog and considered taking a break, but then thought about the few paramilitary guys and athletic types among them who wouldn't be stopping and decided to ignore his fatigue. Weakness wasn't an option, not here, not now.
He turned to cross through a few trees when, without warning, the left side of his threat radar was highlighted with a yellow tone over the blurred section. He swung around in time to witness a spectral warrior with a soft emerald glow approaching from the west a few yards away. Above its head read [Spectral Squire].
The figure had an emaciated form underneath rustic plate armor that hung on top of its form. It wore a helmet shaped like a wolf's head, its jaw forever frozen in a howl. Wisps of spectral fur emerged from gaps in the armor, and glowing green eyes peered out from the helmet's eye slits. A damaged longsword was fused to its gauntleted hand, the blade pitted and scarred. Despite its pathetic look, Jelani could tell there was an unhinged skill to its walk forward.
Based on the yellow hue around it via his threat radar, he assumed that yellow must mean to be cautious or that a threat is possibly a moderate challenge for him. He wasn't sure yet, but he decided to take the first strike himself. Waiting around, letting the enemy dictate the terms of engagement – that wasn't his style. He was here to prove himself, to show that he had what it took to survive and thrive in this new, brutal reality.
"Fuck waiting around," Jelani muttered, his voice low and determined. No point giving this walking corpse the chance to make the first move. He lunged forward, sword arcing towards the specter's neck. The Wolf's reaction was slower than a drunk trying to catch a fly, but somehow it's blade still met Jelani's with a clash that set his teeth on edge.
Jelani pressed his attack, raining down a flurry of test strikes to feel out its movements. The Wolf parried each strike, its movements jerky and stiff, like a puppet with half its strings cut. But there was something there, buried beneath the ethereal rust and decay. An echo of skill, muscle memory etched into a form that no longer had muscles.
The Wolf's blade came at him in a horizontal slash. Jelani stepped back, the spectral steel whistling past his chest. The specter followed up with an overhead chop, then a quick thrust. Jelani parried, dodged, and reoriented himself back into his guard stance. The spectral squire pointed its blade at Jelani and then lunged. It repeated the exact same sequence of moves. Jelani blinked, sure he was seeing things. But no, there it was again. Horizontal slash, overhead chop, thrust. Like a broken record, skipping and repeating the same notes over and over.
"Well, ain't that something," Jelani muttered, ducking under another swing. A part of him wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it all – here he was, fighting a ghost in some twisted forest, and the damn thing couldn't even come up with new moves.
Jelani waited, watching the pattern repeat. Horizontal slash (duck), overhead chop (sidestep), thrust—
He saw his opening and took it. As the Wolf's blade extended in its predictable thrust, Jelani stepped inside its guard. His own sword flashed out, aiming for the gap between its helm and breastplate.
But he'd miscalculated. His positioning was awkward, and it tilted its shoulder, dodging his attack. The Wolf shifted to its right foot and immediately went for a horizontal slash with a two-handed grip. Jelani felt a chill as the spectral sword's horizontal slash passed through his stomach.
For a heartbeat, nothing happened. Then pain exploded in his gut, white-hot and all-consuming. It was like being gutted with a blade made of fire and ice, a thousand needles stabbing into his flesh all at once.
Jelani stumbled back, gasping. But the physical pain was overcome by what came next. His mind was assaulted by memories that weren't his own, emotions foreign yet terrifyingly familiar.
He saw Fenris the Packmaster, a warrior obsessed with power, first awakening while on a ship sailing the green ocean of some foreign world. Felt his certainty that true strength came from within, that relying on others was a weakness. Watched through Fenris's eyes as he cut down thousands of enemy soldiers in a beach battle, each death a step on the path to ultimate power. The final memory hit like a hammer blow. Fenris, alone atop an obsidian tower looking at the ruins of a burning city, realizing too late the emptiness of his victory. The madness of isolation, the crushing weight of guilt. The final, desperate act of turning his blade upon himself, a howl of regret echoing into eternity.
Jelani came back to himself, stomach heaving. The Solitary Wolf stood before him, waiting. In its glowing eyes, Jelani saw a challenge. A dare. A silent question: "Think you're any different?"
Jelani felt sick. He lifted his shirt to check his stomach, and there was no damage, but he felt as if he had been gutted. He thought for a split moment there that it was over for him. It should've been. That reality was a blow to Jelani's ego that he didn't want to face currently. What he got instead felt way worse. Having the memories of a fallen power addict inserted into your brain as if you experienced it was a disorienting feeling. He felt pathetic, weak, everything he had always fought against being.
He thought back to the knight's words around each phase having a concept. He could guess that this one was about the price of ambition. The realization hit him like a punch to the gut. Was this what awaited him if he pursued power single-mindedly? Isolation, madness, self-destruction? The thought terrified him, more than he wanted to admit.
"That won't be me," Jelani snarled, more to himself than the specter. "I'm not ending up like your sorry ass." The Wolf tilted its head, and Jelani could've sworn he saw a flicker of amusement in those dead eyes. It only fueled his anger, his determination to prove that he was different, that he could be strong without losing himself.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
With a roar that was equal parts rage and defiance, Jelani charged. The Wolf met him, its blade rising in that same, predictable pattern. But this time, Jelani was ready.
He feinted at the horizontal slash, then ducked under the overhead chop. As the thrust came, Jelani twisted to the side. The spectral blade passed harmlessly by, and Jelani brought his sword up in a vicious arc.
The Wolf's sword arm separated at the elbow, dissolving into mist before it hit the ground. The specter staggered back, its remaining hand clutching at the stump. If it could have looked surprised, Jelani imagined it would have. Then he lunged forward, driving his blade deep into the Wolf's gut. The specter's eyes flared bright, then dimmed. Its form wavered, becoming translucent. As it faded, Jelani felt a final wave of emotion wash over him. Regret, loneliness, and underneath it all, a spark of... approval?
Then the Solitary Wolf was gone, leaving behind nothing but a small, glowing core. Jelani picked it up, turning the strange object over in his hand. It looked like a white rock the size of a golf ball shot through with glowing green veins, warm to the touch. "Well," Jelani said to no one in particular, pocketing the core, "that was a thing."
He took a moment to catch his breath, the weight of the encounter settling over him like a heavy cloak. The Wolf's memories lingered, a bitter aftertaste in his mind. A warning of paths best left untaken. Jelani had always prided himself on his strength, on his ability to face any challenge head-on. But this... this was different. It wasn't just about physical prowess or mental toughness. It was about the very essence of who he was, who he wanted to be.
Jelani looked up the mountain path, his jaw set. He had a long way to go, and one creepy ghost mutt wasn't about to slow him down. The summit was waiting, and with it, the power he sought. But now, with Fenris's fate burned into his memory, Jelani swore he'd find a better way. He'd get strong, sure. But not at the cost of everything—and everyone—that mattered.
He couldn't idle here. He closed the threat radar and opened the timer and saw he was at [23:16:44]. He closed the timer and began walking while looking at the core he received. "I heard absorbing source from cores would be natural, but nothing's happening," he thought. "The knight did explain we weren't awakened yet, so I guess we just hold these for now." He opened his status scroll.
Status Page Name: Jelani Von (Unawakened) Class: Unassigned Rank: N/A
Source weapon: N/A Ability: N/A Status: Normal
Status was still normal, so that at least confirmed that the damage he felt was psychological and not some kind of ailment. He flipped over a few pages to his inventory but wasn't sure what to do. He tried holding the core up to the inventory. For a second nothing happened, and then suddenly a miniature scroll opened up that hovered above the main one. It asked, "Would you like to add 1 spectral squire core to your inventory?"
"Yes," Jelani said. The core was scanned and then vanished, appearing as a small icon within a box of his inventory. "That's convenient. It must only work for vortex-related items because someone would be hustling a dimensional storage for money. Wait, is that a thing?" Jelani thought, now considering all the ways he could make money if their inventory wasn't limited to regular items. He'd have to bookmark that idea for later and come back to it after the trial.
So they couldn't absorb energy from cores for stat boost, but collecting them was made possible during the trial. "Might be a stretch, but it could be possible we will use them during the trial. In that case, I want to be safe and get a few more," he thought. The gamified nature of the status scroll and how the systems worked made Jelani excited for the chance to collect cores, but the part of him that knew he'd be threatened again wasn't looking forward to it. He wasn't weak, he told himself, he could handle some shadow pain and the stories of a few sociopathic ghost warriors.
He told himself he was tough and that he could take it. But deep down, a seed of doubt had been planted. What if he wasn't as strong as he thought? What if, in the pursuit of power, he lost sight of who he was? Jelani pushed these thoughts aside, focusing instead on the task at hand. He couldn't afford to show weakness, not here, not now.
He did a quick stretch to relieve some tension and started back up his jog. He wondered how everyone else was doing in the trial so far. How many had died?
He hadn't run into anyone yet except for the small group he went out of his way to go see. They were moving up a huge stratovolcano with a dense forest from its lower half down. They were all approaching from the same side, but it was very possible that they may not run into each other with lots of ground to cover.
Ahead of him was a small hill with an opening between a few trees he could climb through. He turned his wrist to make his blade disappear and pulled himself up. He pulled himself up and angled himself sideways to fit between the opening of trees. When he crossed, he immediately saw spectral shards of ice fly through his left arm. "Oh fuck," he thought, looking to his left to find a hunched specter with flowing hair obscuring its face in tattered robes a few yards away with its hand raised.
A couple of seconds passed, and he felt a burst of intense cold pain along his left side. He crashed to the ground and groaned in pain while straining. Then he saw it preparing another shot, so he front-rolled between some trees on his right. Immediately, he felt another vision seep into his mind.
He viewed the silhouette of a tall woman with neck-length silver hair wearing a hooded dark blue robe. She was a prodigious ice mage obsessed with unlocking the secrets of absolute zero. Believing that mastery over cold would grant her dominion over life and death, she pursued her research with reckless abandon. She sacrificed her colleagues to fuel ever more powerful experiments, eventually turning her own body into a conduit for the coldest magics. Her ambition culminated in an attempt to freeze time itself within a small area. The spell backfired catastrophically, freezing her and a whole town to death.
Jelani jolted back to his regular self-awareness, gasping. His whole left arm felt numbed and ached from sharp pains that didn't exist. Jelani wished there was a way to make his mind understand it wasn't real, but he had to just push through the pain. The vision of the ice mage's fate sent a chill through him that had nothing to do with the spectral ice. Another cautionary tale, another example of ambition gone awry.
But Jelani wasn't one to back down from a challenge. If anything, the pain and the vision only fueled his determination. He was here to prove himself, to show that he could handle whatever this twisted trial threw at him. He wouldn't end up like the ice mage, consumed by her own obsession. No, he'd find a way to harness power without losing himself in the process.
He peeked around the corner, and a shard came flying towards him that he narrowly dodged. He would need to get in close but needed to wait for an opening. "I should've stayed on guard and had my radar on. Fuck, that attack hurt," Jelani thought, berating himself for his lapse in attention. He felt embarrassed by how he'd gotten so easily sneaked. It was a blow to his pride, a reminder that he wasn't invincible. But instead of letting it discourage him, he channeled that frustration into focus.
He turned on his radar and resummoned his blade. The familiar weight of the weapon in his hand was reassuring, a tangible reminder of his strength and resolve. He came running from behind his tree to rush behind a few ahead that would put him closer to the specter. With his radar on, he could see that above its head was the name [Spectral Mage]. It also had a yellow glow around it from the focus. It was peaking from behind a tree, waiting to catch him running.
"These would be annoying to face alongside the regular specters and would require more patience I can't afford," Jelani thought, gritting his teeth. He regretted not attempting to climb with Reason and Tobi for a brief moment. The idea of facing these challenges alone suddenly seemed daunting. But he quickly pushed that thought aside. He was Jelani Von, and he didn't need anyone else. He could handle this on his own.
He had an idea to try something and wasn't sure if it would work but decided to try anyway. He dashed forward, keeping a close eye on the specter when its hands raised again. Jelani saw the ice shard form and get colored in a yellow glow. He ran straight while watching the shard, and as soon as it flew from the specter's hand, his radar pinged. He juked to the right, narrowly evading the shard.
A rush of adrenaline coursed through him. He'd done it! He'd used the radar to dodge an attack. It was a small victory, but in this hellish landscape, Jelani would take what he could get. The success bolstered his confidence, reminding him why he was here. He could do this. He could overcome these challenges and claim the power he sought.
He ran around to the right side of the tree, hoping to catch the specter expecting it to want to put distance between them. When he got to the opposite side of the tree, the specter had its hand raised.
Jelani felt the cool breeze of its spectral ice shards passing through his chest.
"Dammit," he cursed, frustration burning in his gut. He'd been so close, so sure he had outsmarted the spectral mage. The failure stung, but it also ignited a fire within him. He wouldn't let this setback define him. He'd learn from it, adapt, and come back stronger.
As the icy pain spread through his chest, another vision assaulted his senses. This time, he saw through the eyes of the ice mage herself. He felt her obsession, her relentless pursuit of power, the way she pushed aside all human connections in her quest for magical dominance. He witnessed her final moments, the horror and regret as she realized too late the cost of her ambition.
Jelani gasped as he came back to himself, his mind reeling from the intensity of the vision. The parallels to his own situation were impossible to ignore. Wasn't he here, in this deadly trial, because of his own ambition? His own desire for power?
But no, he told himself firmly. He was different. He sought power not for its own sake, but as a means to an end. To protect himself, to make a difference in the world. He wouldn't let it consume him like it had consumed the ice mage.
Shaking off the lingering effects of the vision, Jelani forced himself to focus on the battle at hand. The spectral mage was preparing another attack, its hands glowing with icy energy. Jelani knew he couldn't afford another hit. He had to end this, and fast.
He feinted to the left, drawing the mage's attention, then suddenly changed direction, sprinting to the right. The mage's attack went wide, ice shards shattering harmlessly against a nearby tree. Jelani used the moment of distraction to close the distance, his sword flashing in the eerie green moonlight.
The spectral mage tried to back away, but Jelani was too quick. His blade sliced through the specter's form, meeting little resistance. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, with a sound like cracking ice, the mage's form began to splinter and break apart.
As the specter dissolved, Jelani felt a final wave of emotion wash over him. Regret, loneliness, and a bitter understanding of the price of unchecked ambition. But underneath it all, there was something else this time. A spark of... hope?
The spectral mage vanished, leaving behind another glowing core. Jelani picked it up, turning it over in his hand. It was cool to the touch, unlike the warm core from the Wolf. He added it to his inventory, his mind racing with thoughts of what these cores might be used for later in the trial.
Jelani took a moment to catch his breath, the weight of the two encounters settling over him. He'd faced two powerful specters and come out on top. But the victories felt hollow, tainted by the visions of lives destroyed by the very power he sought.
He looked up the mountain path, the silver tower at the peak seeming both closer and impossibly far away. The trial was testing him, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. It was forcing him to confront uncomfortable truths about himself, about the nature of power and ambition.
But Jelani was nothing if not stubborn. He'd come too far to turn back now. He'd face whatever challenges lay ahead, learn from them, and come out stronger on the other side. He'd prove that it was possible to seek power without losing oneself in the process.
With renewed determination, Jelani set off up the mountain path. The forest around him seemed to grow denser, the shadows deeper. He kept his radar active, his senses alert for any sign of danger. He couldn't shake the feeling that the real challenges were yet to come.
As he walked, Jelani found his thoughts drifting to Kamari, the boy he'd tried to save back in Atlanta. The memory of the child's lifeless body was a stark reminder of why he was here. He'd failed to protect Kamari, failed to save himself. But if he succeeded in this trial, if he gained the power he sought, he'd never be that helpless again.
The sound of falling cones snapped Jelani back to the present. His radar pinged and the top of his peripheral vision was highlighted yellow. He looked up and watched as two cones began crashing through the air. He lunged his body forward and fell on his knees narrowly avoiding the cones. As he regained his footing, he saw something move in the shadows ahead. Another specter? Or something worse?
Jelani tightened his grip on his sword, his jaw set in determination. Whatever lay ahead, he was ready to face it. He would not be broken. Not by this trial, not by his own ambition, not by anything.
With that thought firmly in mind, Jelani pressed on into the unknown depths of the forest, ready to face whatever challenges the trial had in store for him next.