I woke up in a desert. The forest I had been in was nowhere to be found. The air was cold.  The ground was cracked.  The place was depressing with muted dark colors that contrasted with the vibrant and warm appearance of the moon.

*ding* 

You have entered the path of evolution!  

Out of nowhere a gray figure appeared. He looked like the people I saw before I  fainted inside the forest.  I couldn't see any details, his figure was blurred even though he was right in front of me.

“Welcome traveler to the path of Evolution. Trials await you. The further you go, the more you can be. Choose a path and prevail. The only solution you have is the truth.”, he delivered his speech in a monotonous voice and then, he vanished.

I was excited. I looked around trying to find landmarks. There was nothing around me as far as I could see.  From the corner of my eyes, I caught on four straight lines of smooth ground. Each one of them was going in a direction. 

After taking my first step, I stopped in shock. I was walking not floating like I had been doing since I became a nature spirit. I tried to float but I couldn't do it. 

“Status!”

[quart=Character name,Alignment]Everheart,Neutral[/quart][quart=Level,Class]4 (10%),None[/quart][quart=Title,Race]None,Nature Spirit[/quart][quart=Fame,Infamy]0,0[/quart][quart=Health,Mana]∞ ,∞ [/quart][quart=Fear,Sadism]280,140[/quart][quart=Strength,Agility]23,34[/quart][quart=Wisdom,Intellect]32,44[/quart][quart=Vitality,Affinity to Nature]∞,100%[/quart][quart=Leadership,Luck]0,100[/quart][quart=Attack,Defense]1,N/A[/quart]

Status

Magic resistance

100

You are on the path of evolution. 

You are visible and touchable.

All skills have been disabled until your evolution ends.

“Skills!”

All skills have been disabled until your evolution ends.

I screamed for all I was worth. I stomped the ground, insulted the sky and pretty much, gave myself a conniption with how mad I was.  For the second time since I started playing this game, I found myself without skills. I didn't take it nicely. I worked hard to build them and they just disappeared...again.

A while later, I calmed down a little when I read the end of the notification. I stomped in a random direction determined to get it over with and recover my skills.

I walked until I saw a mountain in the distance. It was just as bleak as everything else was in this godforsaken place. I followed a path that led to the summit and straight into a cave.

Evolution Quest!

Pass the first trial of Air.

Difficulty: ???

Reward: ???

I looked at this notification with disdain. The system shouldn't have bothered with it. It didn't say anything. I huffed and walked inside the cave. 

As soon as I stepped inside, I gasped in shock at what I saw. There was a man suspended on the wall. His hands and feet were encased in rock. I couldn't see his face but I knew who it was. It was me. I was imprisoned in this cave.

There was a large pit separating us. The me that was on the wall raised his head and stared.

“What do you want?” I looked uncomprehending. Shouldn't he ask me to free him?

“Who are you?” I knew he was an NPC but what I really wanted to know was why did he look and sound like me? 

“What do you want?”, he asked again.

“I want to leave this place.”, I answered. 

“What do you want?”

“I want to leave.” I replied with more force.

“What do you want?” He was getting on my last nerve. I answered. Why did he keep asking the same damn question?

“I don't know.”, I gave my final answer. 

The rock that imprisoned him broke. He lunged at me. Surprised, I wasn't fast enough to move away. We collided and his fist found his way to my face. He sat on my chest. His punches  rained down on the upper part of  my body.

I struggled. He fell on the side. I took advantage of it and moved away from him. He got back on his feet and came back again at me. I didn't have time to think. I reacted and countered his movements. He was faster than I was. I could feel myself getting weaker with each hit I received. 

If I stayed on the defensive, he would kill me. I threw a punch to his stomach. He caught it and twisted my arm. I stomped on his toes. He released me. I kicked him. He fell down to the ground. I went after him. 

I lost counts of the number of punches I threw at him. He didn't look the worse for wear. He didn't receive any damage. I was hitting him but I felt like I was the one being hit.

I was getting tired. My punches grew weaker. This abnormality caught my attention. Since I became a spirit, it was the first time I had this feeling. My arms felt like they weighted a ton. My breathing was ragged. My hands were bloody.

He took advantage of my weakness. He flipped us over. I found myself on the ground receiving more and more blows. I couldn't move anymore. I remained still on the ground while he beat me. I was sure that I would die at any moment but I didn't. Tears pooled in my eyes. I hurt so much. I felt so helpless.

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I thought I outgrew this feeling years ago. What happened earlier deluded me into thinking that the little boy who got beaten and who could do nothing about it was gone. But I knew better now. 

I felt despair grew in me. For the last few weeks, my life had been going out of control. Others took decision for me where I used to decide alone. My home was invaded by people bent on aggravating me as much as they could.  And now, I was getting beaten to a pulp by none other than myself. 

“What do you want?” He put his hands on my throat and applied pressure.

I didn't know what he wanted me to answer. I tried before and he didn't like it. I racked my mind thinking. And then, I got it. The only solution I had was truth, the gray guy said so.

“What do you want?”, he asked again.

“I want to live.” The pressure on my throat decreased. I was on the right track.

“What do you want?”

“I want to live. I want to be happy. I want to be stronger. I... I want to be free.”  

He dissolved into a black mist and entered my body. A peaceful warmth spread through me. All my injuries healed. The tears that I shed dried. I found myself back on my feet like nothing had happened. The cave looked undisturbed. The blood that should have been on the floor had disappeared.

You passed the trial of Air!

Do you wish to become a sprite? 

“No.” It didn't look interesting in the least. A sprite was a low level air elemental that looked like a fairy with wings and elf-like features. The huge problem I had with this race was that they were 3 inches tall. There was no way I would pick this. 

I waited to see if something else would come but nothing did. I went back out of the cave. There, things had changed. Where there was cracked ground before, weeds were growing. The air felt less colder and crisp. The moon remained unchanged in appearance but the atmosphere it gave off was different. It felt dangerous. 

Something else took all my attention. A new path had appeared. I followed it. I didn't get tired like I did during the brawl with myself. Hours later,I came close to a lake. 

Evolution Quest!

Pass the second trial of Air.

Difficulty: ???

Reward: ???

Someone was drowning and calling for help. I didn't hesitate. I dived into the cold water. Something was weird. The more I swam, the farther the drowning person was.

The cold seeped into my body. My strength was leaving me. The current was strong as the water swirled around me. I persevered in my efforts. After what felt like hours, I finally reached the person and dragged him back to the shore.

My strength gave out. I laid down, panting on the sand. The water lapped at my feet. The man I saved looked at me. 

“Who are you?”

“I'm the one who should be asking this question.” He looked exactly like me. Only his hair was different, it was cut short in a military style.

“Who are you?”

I had a bad feeling about it. And sure enough, when I didn't answer, his fist rushed at me. I was getting tired of being hit. I rolled away avoiding his fist by a small margin. I was still exhausted from saving him. Before I could get on my feet, he kicked me in the stomach. I doubled over on the ground. He sat on my chest and put his hands on my throat and tightened. I struggled to remove his hands. I scratched anywhere I could reach. His grip let up. I took a deep breath.

“Who are you?”

“I'm Akira.” His hands tightened on my throat, then relaxed.

“Who are you?”

“I'm Everheart.” If my real name didn't work, I hoped that my name in-game was the correct answer. It wasn't. 

“Who are you?”

I thought about it. Who was I? I drew a blank. Apart from my name, I didn't know which answer would be the best. I didn't think that a history of my life would do.

“I don't know.” I answered. 

“Who are you?”

“I'm myself.” With the last remaining strength I had I pushed him away from me. He let go. His body dissolved into a purple mist and entered my body. 

You passed the second trial of Air!

Do you wish to become a Sylph?

“No.” A sylph was a basic air elemental. It was stronger than a sprite but the height problem still didn't change.

My strength came back. My wet clothes dried. It was like I had never dived into the lake. My breathing calmed down. The scenery around me changed. Flowers bloomed bringing much needed colors to the otherwise lonely world.

Another path showed itself in front of me. I got to think. I followed a path twice and twice, I got beaten. I was not interested in a third time. What would happen if I ditched the path in front of me and tried to make one of my own? 

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