My flight and my mana are both cancelled, so I can give one more thing a try…  I take a quick hop backwards and I… fall on my butt. It seems like all my special abilities have been cancelled on this mountain. This is going to be a pain, I thought these very words as I put one foot in front of the other in a repeated cycle. Looking up this mountain, I felt this was going to be tough, I started kick a small rock I had found on the path. Swing, kick, swish, clack, clack, clack… swing, kick, swish, clack, clack; I repeated tried to kick the pebble along to distract my mind.

When it came to finding things to do, I was a master. I made it a goal of mine to see if I could get this small pebble to the top of the mountain. I was starting to become attached to this little guy. I would kick it a few feet ahead then walk up to it to kick it again. It was a very sadistic relationship, but it was my only one in this silent Void. Seriously, if it wasn’t for the clacking of the pebble, I probably would have gone deaf from the silence, or insane.

I give the rock another kick and watch it bounce a few feet ahead before the ground under it gave way made a huge pit. “Awe dude, my pet rock,” I groaned. It took me a little bit but I finally registered the pit. “What the-,” How come I didn’t notice this before? Why was there a delayed reaction? It felt like my mind was going through morning time grogginess all over again. When I acknowledged the grogginess it slowly lifted up.

Walking around the pit, I continue along the path. Why had I become so attached to that rock? I had walked quite a distance before I felt something get caught on my ankles. Looking down, I saw a trip wire. I have watched to many action movies to not know what is going. I quickly throw myself on the ground.

Not a moment later and I felt something rush past me. When I was on the ground I turned over onto my back and saw a ginormous, log swinging above me. That was way too close for comfort. What was this, an obstacle course? That could’ve killed me!

There was just a little more till I was at the top so I press through. There were a lot of dead, black trees along the road, but one appears to have fallen across this path. The trunk was pretty big though, I had to climb on top of it to get a better view of the path. When I put my hand on the fallen tree, I felt like I had touched cold, rough stone. I climbed on top of this log and hopped down. What should have been two or three feet happened to be a really long fall. I jumped right into a pit! I couldn’t see the bottom, but I didn’t want to. I beat my wings with all my might, straining on each beat. Slowly, I began to rise in the air and to the ledge of this insane hole.

My ascent was slowing down and the gravity was picking up. I was mere inches from the lip of this pit. My muscles were on fire, my stamina depleted, and my desperation sky high. My ascent stopped, and to my horror, I slowly made a descent. No, no, no, this can’t happen! No! I had not even reached the ledge. I was clawing and kicking, anything to gain a few more inches, as I made my descent. 

Then my hand got snagged on something. My lifeline was a big root sticking of the wall of this place. I couldn’t believe my fortune. This dreadful mountain had taken away my best arsenal and scattered my focus.

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I would have given up on the mountain if I wasn’t already near the top. I trusted the strength of the root as I swung my body back and forth and used momentum to climb on top of the root and carefully climb up, out of the pit. I lay on the ground for a few moments just absolutely exhausted. After a solid minute of catching my breath, I sat up and looked around a bit. This trek up this mountain will be tough, I thought.

…

Many pitfalls, trip wires, and other traps later I finally made it to the top. I realized was the top due to an archway greeting me to the top, with a tiny altar. The altar looked like it was made from the same material the ground was made from. I go to the altar and examine it closely. It had a really smooth surface that rose upward into a statue of the most realistic looking angel I have ever seen. The statue was the same white-ish color as the altar; wings were flared up as if it were to take flight. It was only a miniature statue of about two feet tall, but on the altar it was about the same size as me. On either side of the statue were two, massive torches alit with beautiful flames. The statue also had its hands extended toward me with a small dark wood bowl. In the bowl was a mysterious silver liquid.

It was enticing for some reason; I really wanted to drink it. I felt my hands slowly rise up to the bowl; meanwhile I stare deep into this strange fluid. As I stared more and more, I was drawn in, more and more. Before I knew what was happening, I had lifted the bowl from the angel, and had risen the bowl over my head and poured the contents into my mouth, splashing my chest and flowing into my boots.

Immediately I was whiplashed into a super conscious state, with roar a voice in my head screamed 

“NO!”

It was the same voice from before, I was about to speak to it but no words came out. That’s strange, despite drinking a liquid, my throat feels incredibly dry. My mouth tasted really funny, my throat burned and I felt really sick to my stomach. Ever so slowly it got worse and worse. In only a few moments my throat went from a slight uncomfortable feeling to gulping magma. My core was simply on fire. So much pain, I doubled over on the ground. I could not scream, my voice had been robbed from me, my vision started to blur and spin. My head felt as if an icepick was jammed into my temples, and as if I swallowed gasoline and chased it down with lit matches.

The only thing I could do is close my eyes and let the pain pass. A moment rolls by and the pain gets worse. Another moment rolls by and it slowly abates. One last moment, and pain vanishes. I open my eyes and find that I am not at the mountain top. I am in a hallway of some sort. Everything is cracked and grey, smoke is in the air. This place was a mess. I slowly follow the hall into an open space.

The only way I can describe this area, is it looks like an underground coliseum. Except everything is on fire, the fire being black.