Sorn landed again on a new ice floor. It was the first time that his vision to the outside wasn’t barricaded. He could see the outside clearly. The floor itself was extremely simple, consisting of a large circle that he landed on. Floating in the air on a higher platform, he recognized Varian.

“Outsider.”

He turned around to see Jaron, the First Division Spear who had accompanied him to the Stage. Sorn recalled he had been rather cold to him.

Jaron: “I am impressed you made it this far.”

Sorn: “So I’m not too late?”

Jaron: “If you were, you wouldn’t be here.”

He gave him a badge of ice with the number “15” engraved on it. Sorn stared at it, not fully knowing what to make of it.

Jaron: “The next stage will begin when the required number of people arrive.”

Sorn looked around, quickly counting. He recognized most of the faces he saw. There was Oden, Toren, Kaen, Aria, Scorpion, Neville. Just as he counted to fourteen, he felt a poke on the back of his shoulder. There was Crystal, standing in place with her smile more disturbed than usual.

Sorn: “Hey, how are you?”

Crystal suddenly gave him a hug, surprising him greatly.

Sorn: “Um, what brought this on?”

Crystal: “I thought for sure you’d die! Varian was making such a big deal, and my brother said he was going to hunt you. I’m just so happy you’re alive.”

Sorn didn’t know whether he should’ve been happy about this, but he was.

Sorn: “Yeah, I guess I am.”

He realized that despite how horrific the past hours had been, such a simple act of friendliness had made him forget about that moment. It gave him some sense of relief.

Sorn: “So, how’s everything besides that?”

Crystal looked away, gripping her arm as she averted her eyes to the ground.

Crystal: “That last test bothered me a bit, but-”

She stopped because right next to them now were Oden and one of the twins he had met at the academy. He recalled her to be the more feisty one with pigtails.

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Aggressive Twin: “Well, well, well, if it isn’t Mr. Daydream. Surprised you somehow made it here.”

Sorn: “Nice to meet you again too. Um… Aira?”

She glared at him.

Aria: “Aria.”

Sorn: “Oh.”

She scowled at him and turned around to face Crystal. They started to discuss something, but Sorn couldn’t listen in because Oden had begun a conversation of his own.

Oden: “Nice job getting down here. Genuinely.”

Sorn: “Yeah, thanks. Good to see you here as well.”

Oden nodded.

Oden: “All that’s left to do now is make it into the fifth course. Once we get there, I can handle everything. I talked about it with Crystal too. She’s on board with it too.”

Sorn was relieved to see Crystal and Oden were on the same page. Truthfully, he had expected it so he never had worried about it, but it still felt convenient to the point of worthy celebration. However, he still wanted to confirm one thing.

Sorn: “Oden, what are you really doing all this for?”

Oden: “Figured it out, huh. I guess I didn’t try to hide it too much.”

He hesitated, and Sorn realized that they both were now sitting down. Oden was tapping the surface of the ice floor with a stick he crafted.

Oden: “When I was about seven, I lived with my single dad and my kid sister. Their names were Olson and Rose. I was young so my memories aren’t the best, but we lived a pretty good life. My father wanted us to remain out of our Subclan’s politics. We were growing heavily since Dragan caused the downfall of the Spears’ glory. He wanted us away from the tension.”

While listening, Sorn looked ahead at Aria shouting at Crystal passionately while Crystal seemed to be laughing nervously in response. He couldn’t say he was too surprised by Oden’s story. It made many of the puzzle pieces in his head connect. He couldn’t help himself from feeling terrible for him though, as he could already tell where this was going.

Oden: “When my sister was three and the day after I turned eight, I have a vague memory of waking up to the sound of screaming. I remember seeing the outline of my sister crying as she was being taken away, and the back of my father’s head pleading to another man. The man who’s right there.”

He nodded his head towards Varian above. Sorn watched as he stood above from his high viewpoint, his hands behind his back as he stared down with his usual emotionless demeanor. Sorn had witnessed him do some terrible things, but if Oden wasn’t lying, this was a new low.

Oden: “After that, I only saw my father crying by a tree for the entire next week. Only occasionally muttering, ‘it was for us’. He hung himself at the end of that week.”

There was a long pause as Oden continued to drum the ice with his stick, making the same ‘tink’ sound. This explained even more to Sorn. Why Oden was so interested in the history of the Fortress. Why he knew so many people in the Fortress. And more importantly:

Sorn: “Those Prophecy lines-”

He was interrupted by a hole opening in the air, and another boy falling. This caused Aria to perk up immediately.

Aria: “There he is! That little dick!”

Crystal, noticing Oden and Sorn’s confused looks, decided to take the task of explaining to them.

Crystal: “Jaden of the Dancing Blade. I don’t think you know this Sorn, but the twins aren’t actually part of the Gui Subclan. I didn’t mention it before because you don't like Toren, but Aria and Aira were kicked out of the Subclan by their father for, um, complicated reasons. Jaden thought he could take advantage of this and manipulated Aira into giving him her key in the Second Round. Aria found her shortly after and was pretty mad when she found out.”

Sorn watched as Neville and Toren walked to greet him, and Jaron handed him a similar insignia. He took a look at his own.

Sorn: “What exactly do these mean?”

Oden: “They represent the order we got down here in.”

Oden held his own up, showing the number “10”. The other two did the same. Aria seemed to enjoy this topic, and had immediately recovered from her outburst as she proudly held up her own insignia.

Aria: “I got number five!”

Crystal: “I was the third to get here.”

Sorn wasn’t sure which to be most impressed by.

Oden: “We’re not sure what the order is going to mean though. I have some guesses, but I’m more worried about how few Marauders aren’t here.”

Sorn looked around, and he was right. They were the only two Marauders representing the Subclan at the moment. Almost as if on cue, the hole opened for two more people to fall. Serene was the first, followed directly by her fellow Marauder Zacen. They got their badges, but while they did so, two more people fell through the hole. The first, Sorn noticed with great distaste, was Keilan. He was followed closely by the other Marauder and Zacen’s brother, Zalen.

Keilan landed on the ground, and Sorn noticed his eyes were bloodshot. It was as if he had come back from Hell. His features were even more hardened than they normally were, and he quietly snatched the badge. Varian looked at him curiously before clearing his throat to address the room.

Varian: “Well done making it this far, competitors. Do not forget that those of you who prove yourself will attain unparalleled glory. I expect great things from most of you.”

He cleared his throat, as all eyes were focused on his hovering figure.

Varian: “I will now explain the rules for the fourth stage.”

End.