“Welcome, child of #$@!^”

“Child of who?” Tilting my head and responding to the voice, I looked around to find the source of the voice, but it's like it rang out from all around me. Looking inside my mana realm for Coffee, I found he was not there, nor was he by my side. He had been in my mana realm since before I had that nap earlier…

“You can not hear her name? You have fallen that far? Very well, you will be freed from Her and the truth revealed to you.”

Trial One: Your True Memories.

Witness your past self and remember who you truly are.

The green flames around us flared up as a new scene started to unfold. This time, I saw it physically, and as I started to feel anticipation the surroundings changed to reflect an opening in a forest before large doors. Turning, I frowned as I looked at the doors, inscribed on them is a large three headed dog standing before a doorway. Nothing came from the System and as I turned to look at my surroundings, it had become a battlefield.

My head flared up in pain as a memory came surging back, no faces were blurred unlike my previous dreams. I can see Elizabeth standing among a group of adults, her face filled with remorse as she too watched the carnage that was happening. Young people…no, Hybrids, were fighting and killing each other with no mercy.

I saw out of the corner of my eye a black haired girl fighting with a young boy who held a sword. She…I looked weak, exhausted and ready to pass out. I watched as she dodged attacks, falling behind easily. A punch to her nose threw her off balance, a parry gave the boy…Thomas an opening. He grabs her neck, lifts her hand and swings his sword down, cutting through her chest. She held a scream back but tears sprang forth. I remember that pain…and the hunger that followed.

I watched as she stood, an aura filled with thick bloodthirst erupts from her and as I watched her body transformed. Fox ears grow out of her head, her hands turn into claws, eyes become fox-like and fangs grow from the top of her mouth. She lets out a roar as everyone in her surroundings froze, all eyes turning to her. She moved fast, ripping the head of Thomas off his body without him being able to react in the slightest. There, she drank the blood that poured from his head as the scene froze.

“The moment you awoke your true self. You, the child of man and monster, were left to rot in this hole and were raised without care. You were just a slave to them, a body to throw in front of danger and die for them. You have forgotten your hatred for those who enslaved you, forgotten who you were.”

I felt two voices in my head, one opposing this scene, saying it was false, the other saying it's true. I still couldn't hear what they said, and it only served to throw my mind further into chaos.

“You awoke as a Demonic Fox. A vicious monster, filled with hatred for their enemies. But they are loyal to those they care for, filled with only love and devotion to their family.” As the voice spoke, I remembered a memory, a still image of seeing my Status after this moment, where it had said I was a Demonic Fox. “At this moment, a God noticed your awakening.”

I muttered. “The Moon Goddess, Celestia.”

“Wrong. She did not notice you, not at this moment. The dungeon behind you. Do you remember its name?”

Turning to once more look at the dungeon, I felt my mind prickle in pain as my nose bleeds slightly. “Cerberus’s Domain…”

“Mutated from Hound’s Hell, a special type of dungeon that mutated right after your first time being forced into it. You never once questioned why it mutated. Let me show you why.”

The scene changes once again. I stood on a patch of grass and surrounding it was a large desolate dirt filled land. On this patch of grass three bodies laid next to each other. I saw myself there, and next to her…

My mind exploded in pain as I cried out. Those faces, those two faces that I had forgotten, it was them. Sally and Grey. Falling to my knees, I clutched my head as a rush of memories came, of the times I had spent with these two. Looking at Sally, her beautiful silver hair ran down her back while Grey’s violet hair was short and messy.

As the pain faded and the memories stopped coming, I gingerly looked up. I still didn’t remember everything, but I remember these two completely. Turning my head, I saw a giant three headed hound that nearly reached the sky watching these three…that’s right, we were taking a trial here, we weren’t sleeping but doing the trial within our minds.

For a moment, I could’ve sworn one of its heads looked at me, but looking again I saw it was only looking into the distance. This was Cerberus. The middle head was looking down on us…on the younger me, with a worried and tender gaze that left me confused. Why is a Guardian like him looking at the younger me like that?

“Cerberus. The Guardian of the Underworld. He is the loyal hound of Hades. Hounds Hell, a dungeon much like all the rest, a snippet of a distant past. When you entered, he had sensed you through time and he came here to find you. He was a good friend of hers.”

“Of who?”

“&@*($. You can not hear her name. The Goddess of the Moon has worked to prevent you from knowing her name.”

All I heard was gibberish. The scene changed, this time we were in a dark passageway, a lost girl with black hair that looked terrified.

“The Depths of Crater Hell, an ancient city lost to time, buried. You, who were lost here, struggled to escape. Each passing day, you were alone with just a Dark Raven to keep you company.”

The scene played where Alice’s egg hatched, the happiness on my face real. The feelings in my chest as the memory played in my mind felt so real.

“Then, you were lost. You, who were afraid, scared and alone, only wanted to see your friends.” Time went by as I followed the girl, the feelings I felt matched what the voice said. I had been terrified, only wanting to see Sally and Grey again. There was another feeling there, one that silenced the voice that told me this was fake. The feeling of wanting to push on, to keep going till I found the way out.

The moment happened, where I had prayed to the Moon Goddess…it didn’t happen. I didn’t stop in place, there was no voice that called out to me. A splitting pain overcame my mind, as my nose started to bleed heavily.

“N-no, this…She h-helped me here…d-didn’t She?”

Wait, how would I have known of Her? I prayed in my cage to her…but when did I know of Her before that? I watched as my younger self found a room filled with undead, and slowly working with Alice they cleared it until it was only the Guardian. A hard fought battle ensured, and throughout it I could remember the feeling I felt during this battle. The fear, the excitement, the anticipation.

An opening happened when Alice used her Blindness on the giant, and with her extended claws, my younger self pushed herself off the ground with the wind, spinning fast as she burst through the giants eye and into its brain. Soon, the giant fell as the girl emerged from its skull. Battered and bruised, but relieved. She soon moved with Alice into another room, a giant lake there and with happiness on finding the way out, that I felt as well, she jumped into the pool as the scene changed.

I was surrounded by cages of children of various ages. I had just been here, the only difference being the state of the place. No faces were blurred, but I saw the truth as memories rushed into my head. The cages were too small for these children, for these Hybrids, but we had been stuffed in without a care. Bodies of those who had died sat in their cage, others were severely malnourished. The only thing we had here was the darkness.

“In an effort to protect themselves, those of Crater sought a method that would allow them to hunt monsters and grow stronger while not being at risk of dying. They did not know they in turn had been misled by one far stronger than them, who aimed at awakening an old God so that he may control it.”

I watched and listened as these children remained silent, sometimes a newborn would be brought in, already in a cage and joined the rest while they brought the dead out. They fed us scraps of food, molded or bone with nearly no meat, leftovers from their meals. Every now and then they would drag one out. I was here, I don’t remember much of it, I had repressed these memories but now they came flooding back. Yelping with pain, I clutched my head as I watched over time that I remained in my cage, hugging my legs, refusing to move or make a sound, scared I would die.

Then, it was my turn. A human came in, opened my cage and dragged me out. The memories of what happened next flooded my mind, making it feel like I was about to break. The mines, meeting Alice, the holes I dug for my own kind, only to toss their corpses into the holes I had dug. Then Alice, my very first friend, was dragged away from me. I knew it would happen, but I still felt sad, thinking I would never see her, only to be dragged off sometime later. Then finding out she was still alive, only to watch her die.

As I clutched my head in pain as these memories came flooding back, I realized I had never heard or seen of any Moon Goddess or Astraea. That memory…it’s weak, it never happened. I felt something within me, trying to take over my body as I and something else within me fought with it.

“It is not time yet, do not let it take you over. You will soon face it.”

As I stood, my eyes watering and pain lingering in my head, the scene changed once again. This time, it’s the scene before the giant doors. In front of it was something I hadn’t seen before, five humans with bags over their heads were on their knees as another stood in front of them. A man with golden hair stood with his hands behind his back. I turned to see a group of people on a ledge, watching this scene. A young me, Elizabeth, Olivia, Sally and Grey.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

The scene played out exactly as it had done in my dream, I watched as Elizabeth screamed my name and threw me to the side. The red mist plunged into her, but this time I didn’t pray. I only sat there in fear, unable to move. I remembered the feeling of fear that Elizabeth would die here, I felt myself frustrated at being unable to help her, that she had saved me once again.

Suddenly, an elderly woman with deep blue hair appeared along with Tessa. The scene froze. They had come for me, but I hadn’t prayed…

“So She did save me…”

“No. She did not save you, those two did. She did not care for those around you.”

“These memories…why are they different from what I remembered?”

“Child of #*$(!, those memories where you had prayed to the Moon Goddess, had you not been alone?”

I realized that they had been. Olivia nor Elizabeth had been a part of the memories where I had prayed to Her. But…

“Olivia is here…no, no she said she couldn’t remember, that she had been terrified.” A voice that had been trying to take over screamed that these memories were not real, and that the Moon Goddess had saved me all of those times.

“Doubt still lingers, you still question your being. Three of you still fight. Then, allow me to dispel your doubts.”

The scene changes once more. This time, we were in a desert, confusing me, with a sun high in the sky, the heat burning me. Looking around, I saw a man that filled me with hatred walking towards me. He didn’t lay his eyes on me, but continued to walk in my direction. It was The Blade.

Just as he got close to me, the sky flipped to a night sky, even though the sun had been at its apex. The Blade turns to look towards somewhere, a smile on his face as his hand finds his sword. My eyes followed him, only to find Selenia. Why is she here?

I watched as the two spoke to each other, a deal formed between them as my heart sank.

“She is training to get stronger, however her growth is slow. She needs a threat, a reminder of this world. That in a night all that she cares for can be taken away. She is slowly forgetting this, and as she grows stronger she will forget. She must never forget, and there is only one place this lesson can be engraved into her. A place you and her have been before, at the same time.”

“Zalus. You want my help to lead an army to Zalus?”

Zalus…Selenia told The Blade to wait in Zalus, and made arrangements for me to be there? How? I watched as she told The Blade she would give him what he wanted, a stage for the two of us to fight. Selenia told him not to harm those close to me…

He hadn’t either. Bloom and Amelia, while we were friends, were not exactly close to me. Same with Xander and Amanda. But…why? Her reason is weak…

“I already know this world is dangerous…then why?”

“She is getting impatient. She is waiting for you to become a Demigod, so that She may do what She once failed to do.”

“What is that?”

“To consume the power passed down by your mother. The power of Demonic Darkness and Stellar Radiance.”

My eyes widened as my mind fought. No longer trying to argue or reason with me, something within my soul fought for control, it was on the brink of succeeding.

“It is time. You must overcome your innerselves.”

Trial One: Completed.

A Hidden Condition has been met.

Trial Two Beginning: Face your inner selves.

I felt as if my very being was being torn into two…no, three. My surroundings changed back to the room with the green torches as I felt my very soul split into three. The pain is indescribable. I felt weakened and incomplete, and as I stood I saw two others in front of me…no, two of me.

One had no fox ears or tail, indistinguishable from a human. She had flowing white hair and silver eyes, a gentle smile on her face. The other had flowing black hair, a red aura that was filled with hatred, piercing blue eyes that resembled a fox, claws instead of hands, a fox tail and ears. They both looked as I felt, weakened.

“Well, this is unexpected. Another God attempting to show you falsehoods. We don’t believe It, do we?” I turned to the one who had spoken, the silver haired self. I had seen her before…at Flowing River, when I had to face myself there as well. But back then…

“Why don’t you have your ears or tail?”

She smiles brightly. “Because we no longer need them. She hates monster kind, so we are becoming human. For Her, who has saved us so many times, we will do anything. Don’t you remember?”

My mind fell into confusion, I still had conflicting memories, and I still didn’t know which one was right or which one was wrong. I gazed at the me who had black hair. Our eyes met as she said only one thing.

“I am you, you are me.”

She only continued to stare at me as the other me, who I named White, laughed.

“Such a beast is not you. She tried to take control of you, such anger and hatred yet because of Her she failed. Because we fought as one, she failed.”

My eyes remained on Black, naming her after her hair. She only stared at me in silence, an expression of trust on her face. Why is she not speaking in defiance of White? I had seen her before though, in a dream long ago when I had been held in isolation for the crime of killing a monster, and again before I evolved that night in Crater.

“See? She knows she failed and can only stand there in shame. This entire trial only ever tried to test your faith in Celestia, and you’re on the verge of failing. Now, kill her and we can be one again.”

Turning my sight back to White, I looked into her eyes. She had been looking at me with a gentle smile this entire time, but her eyes had not changed in the slightest. Those eyes, they only conveyed one emotion to me.

Closing my eyes, I tried to make sense of the chaos in my mind, all of this had happened so suddenly and had overwhelmed me. I couldn’t tell what was real and what wasn’t, my mind was filled with questions. Why am I Her Chosen? Selenia and Astraea had guided me in the past, yet Selenia had sent The Blade after me and Astraea only appeared once before me…or twice, but I didn’t know if that memory was false.

Then what about my magic, Celestial Eclipse and Astral Ice? Is that something She had given me? For what purpose would She give that strength to me? No..she never gave me that strength. I had learnt Celestial Eclipse, or rather Lunar, magic in Zalus before it mutated. Astral Ice I had learnt myself, after sitting in a courtyard freezing to death. That power…it’s mine. She only ever once helped me directly…to give me energy during my evolution.

Why would she want to change my memories? I couldn’t figure it out. The voice said Celestia wanted the power within me that had been passed down to me from my mother. For what purpose would a Goddess want my power? I don’t know, I don’t know! I know I had awakened as a Demonic Fox then evolved into a Mystic Lunar Fox…That’s right, I only ever evolved because of that gem I got in the Temple of the Blood God. The Crystallised Tear of the Moon Goddess…

“What did She notice me?”

“When you were born, silly. She told you, She has a promise with your mother.”

Opening my eyes, I looked at White and saw her gentle smile along with those eyes. I turned back to Black and she said the same thing as before.

“I am you, you are me.”

“The same words, over and over. Come, kill her, free yourself of her. You will discover the truth once you do, then we will become human for Her and discover your true origins. Kill her, Alisha, kill her and you will become strong!”

My mind wavered for a moment as I closed my eyes again. A memory surfaced at that time, a reminder of what I am. I couldn’t reject who I was anymore.

Opening my eyes once more, I stared deeply into Black’s eyes which had refused to change this entire time. I made up my mind as I started walking towards her. Her eyes still refused to change, and as I arrived before her, I heard a gleeful laugh.

“At last, we can finally become one! We can leave this cursed place and kill those who doubt Her!”

Staring deeply into Black’s eyes, I spoke a singular word.

“Head.”

“Heart.” Black responds to me as I nod.

Without another word, we both flash stepped as I grabbed White’s throat and Black pierced her heart. White’s eyes widened in shock.

“Y-You, how did you know?!”

“Your eyes. I don’t hate myself to stare at myself with such hatred.” The entire time, even though she held that gentle smile, her eyes had been filled with nothing but hatred and she said we would become human, but I remembered who I was. I'm not human, I'm not a monster, I'm a Hybrid.

“Tsk, and we were so close. That bitch Elise just had to remind you of your hatred. YOU SHOULD HAVE KILLED HER!”

“Close to what?”

White had started to fade as she laughed. “Bitch, why should I tell you? Ah well. I’ll tell you, there is nothing you can do anyway. Celestia has no promise with your mother, she only wanted her unparalleled potential in Lunar magic that far surpassed Hers. She had gotten so close too, but failed at the last moment. But now, She has you who inherited her potential, and you foolishly fell into Her lap! So go on, become stronger! That is why She has helped you!

“She wants your potential to flourish, so She can take it from you! If only I had more time, I was so close to changing more memories, you only needed to sleep one more time! PRAISE HER, PRAISE CELESTIA, YOU ARE NOTHING TO HER!”

“What about Tessa, Selenia and Astraea?”

“Tsk, I ain’t telling you anymore. Fuck off and die to Her hands.” White faded away completely, leaving me filled with questions as the trial ended.

You have prevailed against the false self within you, remembering your true self.

A Hidden Condition has been met.

You have gained 20,000,000 experience.

You have levelled to 90.

Trial two: Completed

I smiled as I felt myself fall into a slumber, as my memories, my true memories, all flooded back to me, filling in the blanks I hadn't remembered during the trial.