As Sorn stared at the girl standing before him, he noticed that her eyes seemed to be blazing with determination. She had her hair tied back in a basic ponytail, and she was in a crouching stance. One of her arms was facing towards Sorn.
Girl: "Very well. I'm Zoe of the Claw Subclan. I've been searching this long for a red key, and I'm not leaving without it."
Three ice claws emerged from each of her hands. They were sharp and glistening in the dim light of the labyrinth. She lunged at Sorn, her claws aimed straight for his neck.
Sorn let his training take over and his body reacted on instinct. She was fast, but not enough to prove to be an issue for him. The wisps of green emerged from his limbs, weaving around him like a protective aura. He sidestepped Zoe's initial attack, her claws slicing through the air where he had just been standing.
She immediately threw her arm back. However, Sorn ducked under her second strike and brought his leg up. He delivered a fluid and powerful kick to Zoe's head, his foot connecting with a force that sent her straight into the air.
She landed onto the ice floor, her claws disappearing as he did. Sorn recalled something Oden had told him.
“An Ice Elemental’s generation is extremely powerful, but it consumes a high amount of energy. In order to mitigate our energy consumption, we develop techniques that are finely ingrained within our blood. Sometimes but more rarely, they are ingrained in our personality. When an Ice Elemental can no longer generate ice, it means they are exhausted.”
Sorn walked up to her, putting his foot down next to her face and leaning down, grabbing the necklace.
Sorn: “I’m sorry.”
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Zoe: “Me too.”
She kicked up her feet, slamming him in the crotch. Immediately, Sorn went down, railing out next to her.
Zoe: “It’s a shame I broke my arm on that fall, otherwise I’d have stabbed you and grabbed your keys. I can’t believe I lost to someone this idiotic, and an outsider on that.”
It took a few seconds for Sorn to recover and he rolled over, her blue key still in his himhand.
Sorn: “What did you do that for?”
Zoe: “Can you blame me for being frustrated? This was supposed to be my breakthrough. Where I finally bring my Subclan to glory. It can’t be done anymore.”
Sorn sat leaning back with his hands on the ice.
Sorn: “Couldn’t you just always work hard and prove yourself later.”
Zoe laughed at this.
Zoe: “You truly know little of our world. I can’t say I’m surprised though, considering you are an outsider. Now go. So I can suffer in peace. After all, it’s a race, don’t let yourself lose.”
Sorn nodded, thanking her although he wasn’t sure why. He felt extremely annoyed. He felt as though all these situations he had encountered could be solved so much more simply. Honesty and compassion could have done wonders.
Didn’t I just put my mind to passing this race for myself?
Sorn supposed he was no better. He walked back down the hall, into the mirror room. If Scorpion was still there, he’d just beat him or run away at this point. It was the only way he knew how to make it out of this maze.
As he entered, he noticed the broken mirrors, and three people stacked on the floor in the middle groaning. He ran past them, trying his best not to look at any remaining mirrors. He got out without any issues or seeing Scorpion and he took a deep sigh of relief. He then looked to his right, then to his left. And there was Keilan, standing still as if in shock.
Sorn: “Um, hello?”
Keilan: “Yeah, you're dead.”
Sorn had been keeping some wisps around his feet just in case, and he used them to propel himself forward, narrowly avoiding Keilan’s downward sword strike. He immediately toned up the wisps to one hundred percent, recalling the path that he had taken to get here. He wasn’t sure, but he could feel Keilan behind him.
A sudden gust flew towards him, hitting him in his back as he rolled into the room he started in. He looked up to see the Proctor standing in front of him, facing Keilan.
Proctor: “The contestant has made it into his room with both required keys. You will not be allowed to inflict harm onto him.”
Keilan: “Alright, let me just speak with him.”
The Proctor stepped aside, and the freezing wind around Sorn suddenly started going faster, and a hole began forming from underneath his feet.
Keilan: “Sorn, I don’t know what you’re planning, or if you even have a plan. Whatever it is, it won’t work. I’ll make sure to kill you, even if it’s the last thing I do.”
Sorn: “And I’ll make sure to save you. I’ll see you in the later stages, Keilan.”
He looked up at the red and blue keys dangling from Keilan’s neck as he fell through the hole. He had already made his mind up to assist Crystal with her goal, he wasn’t going to let this suicidal nutjob stop him.
End.