The next day, when he woke, he grimaced at what he had to do. The cocoon of blankets he formed was larger than usual in order to give him more room for swinging his arm. Then he used the handle of his knife to strike himself. Some of the blows shifted the blankets, and he was worried that the noise of each could be heard. However, with his newfound wisdom covering the true risks to the reincarnated ones, he was confident he was safe. To become the best that he could become, he needed to take risks.

His legs ached from the repeated blows, and he was certain he had created plenty of minor injuries to work with, but in the dark it was hard to tell. For a moment, he considered flipping the blankets open to let the light in, but then he checked himself. The injuries were on his legs, and he only needed an instant to check them. He broke his normal routine and pretended he had to use the big kid’s toilet, the one with a cubical door. The moment it was locked he yanked down his pants and nodded when he saw the angry black bruises covering his thighs and shins.

It was more than enough to work with – in fact, probably too much. Too many of them looked deep, but that was, where he was concerned, better than not having enough. Next time he was in the isolation room, all the deep bruising that his spells couldn’t touch would be healed. Until then, he would gladly suffer the minor discomfort.

The day was normal right up to the time immediately after lunch, when Dimitri took them and a gaggle of other children, around half the four-year-olds, outside, to what appeared to be a particularly large tool shed.

As they got closer, it was clear that the heavy barn-like doors were already open.

The moment he stepped through, the atmosphere changed even before his eyes adjusted to the reduced light. He and everyone else could feel the oppressive air that surrounded the trial. There was a tension, an expectation of action, an aura that was mildly uncomfortable for humans, but one that would drive all monsters away.

He breathed in deeply and contained his mounting excitement… at least, mostly. Some slipped out, but that didn’t matter. Little Ta enjoyed the trial. He liked the lazy playing in the lake and the hot sun.

Pa punched him lightly on his shoulder, and, when Tom looked, the other boy appeared just as happy as Tom felt, which was jarring. The larger kid was usually surly about these sessions, and complained incessantly, so the excitement was off-putting. Tom guessed it had been a couple of weeks, so maybe he had forgotten what he hated and only remembered the good bits. The grass-is-greener sort of thing. Tom grinned back, then checked on Bir.

She, too, was happy, but that was less surprising, given her past behaviour.

Tom pushed them out of his mind and admired the perfectly spherical ball that was floating half a meter off the ground. It looked like it had been created out of a dense orange stone, and was as wide as he was tall.

The approach to the trial was blocked by a volunteer. It was a thin woman in her mid-thirties, at least judging by her appearance; she had sharp Egyptian features. She held up a stone:

“Scan as you go past.”

That voice reminded him of the day of the ritual. This was the adventurer, the woman called Delilah who had been gossiping during the trial. He guessed he should be thankful; her presence had forced the man running it to keep to the script. Trying not to stare at her, he did as instructed and placed his hand on the stone she proffered. It would register him, just like the isolation rooms did. Then he was through. Dimitri, who had got ahead of them, ensured that they approached the trial stone with an even interval of thirty seconds separating them. This measure was designed to allow them to move away smoothly when they all exited after their four hours. As each child touched the stone, they vanished.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Then it was his turn. He walked up, lifted his hand to place it on the surface, and never felt his hand connect.

One second, he was standing in the shed with the sphere filling his vision, and then the next moment he was here. In the trial. In a cozy room, one that both he and Little Ta recognised.

Tom snorted.

It was his bedroom from Earth, and the place where Little Ta had been brought every time. He had found it strange at first, but now considered it to be his special place.

“Oh, you’ve changed.” A pleasant voice said from behind him.

Tom spun around in surprise and wished he had a weapon.

The room was like usual, but this woman being here was not expected, though he had vague memories of her presence previously.

She was a matronly-looking older woman who was unruffled by his aggression. Her expression was relaxed, and her eyes appeared kind. She glanced down at the clipboard she was holding like she was reading a note. “Do you wish to do the usual?”

Tom stared at her suspiciously. “Are you the trial administrator?”

She arched a single eyebrow. “Interesting. Yes, you have definitely changed.”

His eye twitched, and he could feel his heart thudding in his chest. He was afraid of discovery, and it hadn’t slipped his mind that she hadn’t answered him.

“Are you?”

“Yes, I am.” She smiled neutrally at him.

Tom tried saying various things, from being outright rude, to obnoxious ones that revealed way too much about himself. Social Silence was not triggering no matter what he thought about blurting out, which was interesting to say the least. Especially so, given that it was clear that she knew the truth about his circumstances.

“Can you explain the rules of this trial?” Tom started, then paused. Perhaps, maintaining some level of plausible deniability was sensible. “A friend of mine was teasing me and told me I could do more here than play in the lake.”

“A friend?” She seemed amused by that claim. “I doubt that very much, Ta. Is that the right term of address or would you prefer a new name now?”

“Ta is fine.”

“Suit yourself, Ta.” She emphasised his name like she knew it was a false one. “Now, Ta, before we continue, do you wish to apply your new Speedster title to this session?”

Tom’s mind went blank for a moment, and then his eyes widened. That was one of the titles he hadn’t got around to checking yet, and Little Ta had never been asked about it in all the other sessions. The fact that she asked the question now, together with the other mistakes he had made… The mistakes were numerous, too - his conversations had been too complex, his reaction to her voice behind him too violent, not to mention the additional evidence of what was probably a new title. There was no way the trial administrator didn’t know everything.

“What can you tell me about the title?” he queried hopefully.

She laughed:

“Well, I know four-year-olds don’t clear trials faster than adults, let alone over a range of nine ranks.”

He swallowed:

“That’s… how? Do you know everything then?” The words squeaked out.

“No, what I have access to is a long way from everything. But I think I’ve had enough fun teasing you. It’s enough to tell you that I know why this title became available.”

Tom hesitated. He deliberately ignored, at least momentarily, what she was implying. For now, he wanted information:

“If I were to use it, how would it work?”

“Avoiding the topic wouldn’t help you, Tom. As for your question, using the title in this trial will increase the dilation ratio. The usual four hours will pass outside, but in here it will be longer. Biologically, you’ll age at the same rate as the rest of Existentia. It’s perfectly safe. The extra time can’t be divined.”

She had said his name!

There was no point in pretending anymore. He had to face the issue head-on:

“How secure is this trial?”

She nodded and went down on one knee the way adults did to get on eye level with the children:

“You’re asking if you can trust me? There is only one way to address that.” Her facial features grew harder and more serious as she met his gaze. All pesky human emotions were pushed away. “I swear on the GODs themselves to only ever tell you the truth.”

Tom’s mouth almost opened in surprise at the shock of hearing her say that. This was a far stronger reassurance than he had been expecting.