My stomach went from nervously knotted to flat out painful.

Hunters knew death well – it was part of the job. Death of the monsters they hunted, death of their unfortunate companions, and Hunters knew that every time they went on a mission they might die themselves. I even once read a statistic that seventy percent of the people that visited the psychiatrist were younger Hunters. The older Hunters were too used to death to care about it anymore.

I might be a Hunter now, but it was the first time I’d ever actually seen a corpse not in a funeral home. That I remember. I saw my mother the night she died, but I didn’t actually remember it. Just vague impressions and emotional damage.

This was also the first time I blatantly witnessed what would happen to me if I failed. If I didn’t make it across my tree bridge and activate the shield stone before the mud monster caught me, I was going to drown in mud like Mr. Wilson.

That was, if the mud monster was still in the pit, which I was sure it was. Why hadn’t it showed itself yet?

I took a deep breath and squished the freaked out bubbles in my stomach. I can do this, I thought. I can do this. I will get across that tree and rescue the little girl. I had good balance, running across this thin tree wouldn’t be a problem. At least I convinced myself of that.

Still, my fingers shook as I dug the shield stone out of my pocket and gripped it. I didn’t know what was going to happen. Since the shield stone was my saving grace, I needed it as close as possible so I could break it in a moment's notice. What if I got to the girl, but couldn’t get the stone out before the monster attacked? I couldn’t risk that.

My gaze locked with the little girl’s frightened one. “I’m coming over now. Don’t let me trip on you,” I warned. Although, really, if the worst that happened was I squished the girl I was trying to save, I’d consider that a good thing.

She nodded, her chin quivering with her efforts to not cry. Then she leaned down and pressed on the tree trunk bridge, obviously trying to use her tiny frame to keep it in place.

My heart broke for her. She was so young to have that kind of awareness. Where did she come from? And why was she in that mud pit to begin with? I’d have to wait until we were safe to ask.

I didn’t let my mind wander anymore. Instead, I focused on the narrow path ahead of me. “Here we go,” I whispered.

I most likely couldn’t outrun whatever was down there, so I went for the sneaky approach first. I carefully stepped forward, my body bent and arms slightly spread for balance. Anything I could do to keep the tree from rolling out from under me.

The hanger on my hip knocked on a random branch jutting out from the tree trunk, but luckily it wasn’t hard enough to make me lose my balance. A dozen pine needles were knocked loose and rained down to the mud below. I froze and watched the smooth surface with my heart pounding in my ears. A couple branches had fallen into the mud pit earlier when the tree fell onto the stone pillars, and nothing happened. The difference was, now I was on the tree, directly over the sink pit – the monster’s lair. I didn’t know what would stimulate it to look up towards me.

…The surface of the mud stayed perfectly still and smooth.

I swallowed hard and focused on crossing the bridge. There was just twenty feet between me and the girl. I could only to take it one step at a time. In the back of my mind, I could hear Uncle Maveric’s voice, ‘I bet you’re quite strong… Are you sure the Association’s testing stone wasn’t broken?’ Each step felt like a mockery to Uncle’s expectations. But just because I was weak, it wouldn’t keep me from protecting those around me.

I looked up and focused on the little girl. I was going to show Dad and prove to Uncle Maveric that I could do this.

Suddenly, the little girl’s face twisted in fear.

I felt it a second later.

A strong presence grew steadily below me. The smooth mud rippled.

Shit! I threw caution to the wind and bolted across the tree. The only thing on my mind was getting to the other side. I leapt over the branches in my way and landed on the shaking trunk. My hanger flopped around from my movements, catching on every obstacle I passed and raining debris behind me.

The mud rose up directly under me until a mound-ish head formed on a thick neck. The monster’s large, square jaw opened and let out a low, gravelly moan. Triangular eyes opened, revealing vacant black holes. It looked up at me and roared.

My breath caught in my chest. A Mud Golem? That’s what the little girl meant by ‘mud monster?’ But there shouldn’t be any Mud Golems in the area! The Hunter’s Association put a lot of emphasis in recording the local monsters and made sure everyone knew what was where. How did such an A rank monster slip through their notice?

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The little girl’s scream was high-pitched with terror.

The Mud Golem roared again. A muddy hand separated from the mud, the fingers fat and dripping disgustingly. That was the only warning I had. The hand shot up at me, the Mud Golem’s arm stretching thin like a rubber band.

I yelled and jumped, but I wasn’t fast enough to dodge the monster. The thick, wet hand clamped around my leg mid-jump, wide enough to cover my whole calf. Pain shot from my toes to the top of my head as my bones screamed under the crushing pressure.

I gasped and landed on one leg on the trunk. My bare foot slipped off the tree and I crashed down, sending vibrations through the tree and making it rock dangerously on the stone pillars that supported it. My hand holding the shield stone smacked into a branch, causing my fingers to go numb. I didn’t even realize that the shield stone slipped from my fingers until the rough bark scratched my palm. My eyes widened with horror as I looked down, just in time to see the sparkling stone splat onto the mud below. I was hopeless as I watched my saving grace sink into the vile sludge.

The little girl started to scream, over and over again, piercing my ear drums.

The Mud Golem roared and tugged, sending another shot of pain through my body. It felt like my leg was going to get ripped off.

“No! No! No!” I gripped the tree for dear life. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't overpower an A ranked monster.

My fingers ripped off the tree, leaving blood streaks on the rough bark. At the same time, the tree cracked in half and rolled off the stone pillars. For a second, I was weightless. My heart leapt into my throat and I choked on it in terror. Then the Mud Golem pulled on my leg and dragged me down. All I could hear was the wind rushing by my ears and screams – mine and the little girl’s.

I landed on the mud with a splat hard enough to make my ribs ache, the thick surface resisting me at first. The tree landed on the mud just inches from my head, peppering me with wet flakes. But the Mud Golem wasn’t done yet. It dove into the mud, dragging me with it. The cold, wet clay encased my legs, quickly climbing up to my waist. I gasped in panic and flailed my arms around trying to grab the tree, but my slick hands couldn’t get a grip.

“No! NO!” I think I was crying, but I was too scared and panicked to realize what I was fully doing. All I knew was if I was dragged down into the mud, I was dead.

But I was dragged down, regardless. The mud rose up to my chest. Then my shoulders. Then my chin. Instinctively, I closed my mouth and eyes just before the cold mud covered my head.

All noises stopped, leaving just my frightened thoughts. Dimly, I was aware that the pressure let up on my leg. Did the Mud Golem let me go? It didn’t matter if it did, I couldn’t move, anyway. The mud was like cement on my body. Maybe the monster wasn’t hungry yet since it also had Mr. Wilson to eat. Was it just going to wait until I slowly suffocated to death? I was a good enough swimmer, I could hold my breath for three and half minutes. Was I going to just wait until then? What was going to happen to the little after I died?

I’d never experienced such dark solitude before, and as scary as the situation was, my panicked thoughts settled down. After all, I’d always lived on borrowed time and I knew as soon as I chose to be a Hunter, my days were numbered. I just didn’t think it would be so soon.

Dad’s words drifted into my mind, I lost my wife to a monster on the other side of those walls … I’m not going to lose my daughter too!

My chest squeezed tight as grief washed over me. Oh my god, how was my death going to affect my family? Would Dad blame Uncle Maveric? Would Uncle Maveric ever forgive himself for encouraging me to be a Hunter? I’d never cared much for myself before, but I couldn’t ignore my family’s emotions. I couldn’t just give up here.

Move! I commanded my hand but no matter how much I strained, I couldn’t even budge my fingers. My lungs were burning, screaming and begging for air. Only there was none. If I opened my mouth, I’d breathe in nothing but wet clay.

The mud shifted around me. My closed eyes followed the movement, distinctly aware of the Mud Golem circling me. Did it notice I wasn’t dead yet? I had hoped that it would displace the mud encasing me enough that I could move, but it didn’t. I was still cemented in place.

Frustration built in me. Why was I so weak? Uncle Maveric was a testament that there was strength in my blood. Why was I so weak? Why, in an era where only the strong survived, could I not measure up? Mentally, emotionally and physically … Why was I so weak?

I hated it. Hated myself for not being strong enough to protect my family, even though I kept going on and on about wanting to help people.

I just … I just wanted to prove that my mom didn’t waste the sacrifice she paid for me.

“Do you want to know?” A clear, feminine voice broke through my tattered thoughts. Her words didn’t come through my ears, but were input directly into my mind.

I was so shocked, I gasped in mud by accident. My lungs burned all the more and I convulsed, desperately needing air.

“Do you want to unlock your full potential?” the voice asked.

Suddenly, a teal display screen appeared in my mind, a picture so vivid that I could read the words on it. [You have filled requirements for the Getting Stronger Quest. Do you accept? Yes or No?]

What was this?

Another box appeared below the first screen, slowly counting down. [Five…]

I'd never heard of anything like this. Was it a different type of monster attack?

[Four…]

If I agreed to whatever it wanted, would it save me?

[Three…]

The presence of the Mud Golem drew closer to my face, and something solid – a finger? – pressed painfully on my cheek.

[Two…]

YES! I screamed in my mind, humming with effort.

A blinding white light exploded in my mind. There was the sound of rushing water in my ears and a warm, soothing feeling replaced the cold mud immobilizing my body.

Then, nothing.