Silence reigned supreme as the hound extermination crew, alongside Marrow, stood still, their attention focused on the path ahead. A massive gorge, spanning over three hundred feet, separated them from the next patch of dry land. However, the next piece of land floated sideways to their left, the one after that floated sideways to their right, and the next floated upside down. Finally, a normal strip of land presented itself over a thousand feet away. This bizarre yet unique pattern repeated randomly for over ten kilometers.

“Why would anyone do this? Why can’t they just make things normal?” Slim complained bitterly with a sigh. They had only managed to cross the first obstacle, yet another had presented itself.

"The first exit should be somewhere around here, but how are we supposed to cross this?" Scott scowled behind his mask, staring into the seemingly endless gorge. This doesn’t look like some kind of illusion, and I can’t see any strange oddities either. Will the elemental shards help us out here, too?

Scott pondered for a moment before retrieving another elemental shard from his inventory. He glanced to his side, focusing on Marrow, who stared at the odd route. Sensing Scott’s peculiar gaze, the summon turned toward the eldritch knight.

“Why are you looking at me like that?" Marrow said, frowning.

At that same moment, a hand dropped onto the shoulder of the skeleton, and Slim’s voice echoed before it could turn. “You’re going to have to take one for the team, buddy,” Slim said with a beaming smile, his grip firm on the shoulder of the summon.

Zara firmly gripped the summon by his sleeves, her smile as sweet as honey. “Please, help us out one more time,” she implored, her glossy eyes fixed on the impeccably dressed skeleton.

“I'm not some emotionless dummy, you know,” Marrow protested, attempting to break free from the clutches of the persistent duo. Slim and Zara, however, showed no intention of releasing their hold on the summon.

“I can understand this scary guy doing this, but how can you do this to me?” Marrow glared at Slim, who sported a whimsical smile. “You even coaxed this damsel to do your bidding, too.”

“Me?” Slim adopted an aggrieved tone. “It was all her...”

Zara cut him off sharply. “Shut up, Slim.” The brawler shot a disapproving look at the necromancer before gently caressing the arm of the summon. “Please, help us one more time, okay?” Zara's radiant eyes, almost puppy-like, were focused on Marrow.

The skeleton sighed, readjusting his clothes. “I'm not good at jumping but let me give it a shot.”

Ignoring Slim, Zara's disposition remained the friendliest of the trio, Marrow noted. For a moment, he entertained the thought that Scott might resort to violence if he didn't agree with the brawler.

“Take this. It could be of help,” Scott said, tossing the elemental shard toward the skeleton.

Marrow caught the blackened crystal, exhaling deeply. Stepping back, his attention fixed on the strip of dry land to his left. The summon unleashed a frightening burst of speed, jumping as he reached the edge of the gorge.

Simultaneously, the jaws of the spectating trio dropped in disbelief. Marrow vanished and reappeared over three thousand feet away, standing on the patch that floated upside down.

Zara found herself muttering in a daze, her gaze fixed on Scott. Slim, too, stared at the masked half-human, believing that if anyone could make sense of what just happened, it had to be Scott.

“Buddy, did you see what happened?” Slim asked.

Scott nodded; his eyes focused on the gorge below. “A light shot out from there the moment he jumped, and the elemental shard released an effervescence which coated and teleported him to that place,” Scott explained.

“But why did it send him so far away?” Zara voiced her thoughts.

“I have no idea,” Scott said, pondering for a moment before continuing. “If I had to guess, it might have something to do with the type of elemental shard.”

“Are you implying the type of elemental shard determines how far he'll be teleported?” Zara asked, turning to Marrow, who helplessly paced around the patch. The gravity-defying field didn’t restrict his movement or impede him in any way whatsoever. However, the elemental shard had lost its black sheen, transforming into a transparent crystal.

“That's what I think, but the only way to confirm it is with another crystal,” Scott said, turning toward Slim. He hesitated for a moment before continuing, “Slim, we're also going to need to test what happens when someone falls into the gorge. So, yeah.”

Zara wore a wry smile as she gazed at Marrow, a sentiment echoed by Slim. The necromancer promptly resummoned the skeleton, and before it could utter a word, Slim briefed it on its new tasks.

“I refuse,” Marrow declared without a moment's hesitation.

"Huh? What do you mean, you refuse?" Slim draped his arm over the skeleton's shoulder. “You guys are always complaining about being bored over there; I’m giving you an opportunity to go wild, yet you’re refusing.”

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

“I don’t care what you have to say, but I’m not doing that. Ask Ivory or Rattlebones,” Marrow stated, folding his arms across his chest.

Slim sighed. “Well, I guess I’ll have to ask Necrobone. It’s a shame though. Once he finishes the task, he’ll brag to Mia when next we meet, and here I was trying to give you that chance, but oh well.” Slim sighed again with a shrug.

Raising his hand to summon Necrobone, Slim was interrupted by Marrow's anxious voice. “Wait!” he called out, a beaming smile now across his face.

“Hmmm? Why should I wait?” Slim asked, puzzled. “Didn’t you say I should ask someone else?”

“C’mon, Slim. Who said what isn’t important. We should be focusing on how to cross this place. Don’t tell me you thought I was being serious,” Marrow said with a sheepish smile.

“So, does that mean you’re going to help us?” Slim asked.

“Of course,” Marrow replied without pause, patting the shoulders of the necromancer. “I only need to jump into the gorge, right?”

Slim nodded.

“Alright then, here goes nothing,” Marrow said with a smile, but he couldn't conceal the dread on his face.

The skeleton adjusted his jacket before walking toward the cliff's edge. Pausing, he turned toward the hound extermination crew. Slim, Zara, and Scott all gave him a thumbs-up, as if it had been prearranged.

With a forced smile, Marrow reciprocated with a thumbs-up before facing the unfathomable darkness below. After taking a deep breath, he jumped.

Zara, Slim, and Scott hurriedly approached the edge, peering into the darkness, but Marrow was nowhere in sight.

“Slim, are you still connected?” Zara asked before Scott could.

“Y-Yes, but you’re not going to believe what’s happening,” Slim muttered in a daze, pointing toward a patch several feet away. At that moment, Marrow suddenly fell from the skies, descending into the gorge. Then, Slim pointed to another patch floating sideways, and before long, Marrow free fell sideways, disappearing into the void between the surrounding lands, and reappearing several meters away again.

“Get me out of this, Slim!” Marrow shouted, disappearing into the void once more.

“You’re doing great, buddy. I’ll have you out soon,” Slim assured him before turning toward his companions. “So, I guess it’s time we experiment with the various elemental shards.”

“Yeah, but there’s a problem, though,” Scott said, pointing toward a plot floating upside down. “By my calculations, the first exit is over there. I have no idea what would happen if Marrow landed on it.”

“Sacrificing one exit to test the capabilities of the elemental shards seems like a fair trade-off in my books. What do you guys think?” Zara asked, her attention focused on the spot concealing the first exit.

“I agree. I’m more concerned about the number of elemental shards we'd have to sacrifice to get it right,” Slim added.

“Slim! Get me out of here!” Marrow screamed, free-falling into the darkness again.

“Give me a second buddy,” Slim said before turning toward Scott. “Buddy, what about your ability to fly? Can you use it to carry us over?”

“It’s not the same as it used to be. It’s also likely we’ll be sent free-falling like Marrow if we attempted that,” Scott said softly.

Skill: Void Levitate activated!

Scott’s body slowly faded into nothingness until he completely disappeared.

The half-human silently reappeared behind the duo. “See. It’s not the same,” he said.

Zara and Slim flinched as they took a step away from the masked man.

“Are you trying to kill us, buddy?” Slim heaved, casting a wary glance over his shoulder. One more step, and they would have plunged into the gorge.

“Slim, I'll kill you if you don't get me out of here!” Marrow's voice echoed as, once again, he descended into the depths of the gorge.

“Give me a minute,” Slim replied without turning toward the skeleton.

Meanwhile, Scott chuckled as he continued, “Although I can still fly, I can't interact with my surroundings while doing so,” he explained.

“That option is off the table then,” Zara sighed as she retrieved several elemental shards of different colors from her inventory. “Our only choice is to experiment with these.”

“Slim, you should resummon Marrow,” Scott suggested from the side.

“Oh, yeah. I totally forgot.” The necromancer chuckled before raising his hand, and the free-falling skeleton shot out of the ground. This time, however, Marrow raced toward Slim, grabbing the necromancer's neck while hurling curses at his summoner.

Scott and Zara silently waited by the side, pretending not to notice the dispute between summoner and summon.

A minute passed, and Slim wrapped his arm around Marrow's shoulder as he laughed heartily. “We've settled our differences. My leader, please give him the first elemental shard.”

Marrow glared at Slim for a moment before walking toward Zara. The feline brawler randomly selected a magenta elemental shard from the pile, handing it over to the skeleton. “Good luck,” Zara whispered with a sweet smile.

Marrow's frown eased slightly as he nodded, then approached the cliff without much ceremony. The summon jumped again, disappearing and reappearing in a flash.

“It worked,” Zara exclaimed with excitement, unable to contain her smile as she pointed at Marrow, who stood on the spot where the first exit was. The fact that the summon didn't automatically trigger the exit only heightened her enthusiasm.

“Zara, you should get over there before something strange happens,” Slim advised.

“Resummon Marrow first. There might be a rule forbidding two people from landing in the same place,” Zara suggested.

“That's true. You can't be too careful in this damned place,” Slim agreed, raising his hand. Marrow disappeared and re-emerged from the ground.

“Good luck,” Scott said softly.

“Thanks,” Zara replied, smiling while taking a deep breath. The other elemental shards vanished as her fingers tightened around the magenta variant.

“Since you're going ahead of us, I guess I'll be the temporary leader,” Slim declared with a beaming smile. “See you on the other side.”

The feline brawler shot a disapproving glare at the mischievous necromancer but opted for silence. She leaped, and a beam of light emanated from the gorge, ensnaring the elemental shard. Simultaneously, a cocoon of energy enveloped the feline brawler, causing her to vanish only to reappear several feet away.

“How do you feel?” Scott inquired over the party channel.

“I'm…” A click abruptly interrupted the cat girl's response, and she vanished. Before Scott or Slim could comprehend the situation, the chaotic patches of reality shifted rapidly, aligning themselves. Only the portion containing the used exit remained absent.

“What happened?” Marrow muttered.

A cyclone erupted from the vacant section, propelling Scott, Slim, and Marrow into the air, limbs flailing uncontrollably.

“Hello, everyone! It’s Deevok again! The first exit has been used, so it’s time for a little reshuffling. I apologize for any broken bones you might experience during this exercise.”

Following the examiner's announcement, significant changes unfolded. Trees, grasses, and stones seemed to gain sentience, creating new pathways for rivers and streams. Cyclones carved barren routes, withering millions of flowers. In an instant, a complete reset occurred, and all the champions found themselves back in the safe zone, sprawled on the ground with varying degrees of injuries.