I entered the double doors.
The room was made of stone, the stones in the walls looked as if they were hand cut by dwarves.
I began to shiver because this room is really cold!!
The stench of flesh in decay pervaded the small chamber.
On my left was a small shelf with a rolled up piece of paper, a scroll?
My hands trembled with excitement as I took the scroll and slowly opened it up.
'Beware the dragon. He is hungry, but you must not slay him because he can help you if you play your cards right'
"Wow, there's a dragon here too?"
In front of me was a spiral staircase leading down. The stairs creaked under my weight as I walked down the stairs and into a tunnel covered with snow and ice.
'No wonder it's so cold in here.'
On my right was a trap door. As I opened it, I noticed a broken fragment of a wooden ladder hanging from the opening.
Another trap! If I had climbed down there without even looking, I would have taken a big step into darkness; and fallen to my death. Well death ifI didn't have godlike power, but I still would have lost.
As I made a 90 degree turn, I saw that the corridor was covered with ice, completely frozen.
"Remember," Hermès said to me, "You must win by using your wits."
"I got it," I said, "No energy blasts, I must use my brain."
I began to go into deep thought.
'The scroll mentioned a dragon. Breathing fire to melt the ice maybe?'
Suddenly I felt warm air rush to my right side. I turned my head and a saw a doorway leading into another tunnel covered with grey bricks instead ice.
"That's odd. Where did that come from?"
As I entered the tunnel, I noticed that the room was very hot. Sweat dropped down my face as fear gripped me. Something was wrong!
As I looked ahead to the next part of the tunnel, all I could see were two eyes in the darkness. They seem to be watching every move I made.
"Is that the dragon?"
Just a couple paces away was huge pile of gold worth a king's ransom!!
The pieces had been melted together.
"That's what the scroll meant. That's how to melt the ice."
I noticed a charred skeleton at my feet holding a shield and a broken spear.
I could hear the dragon breathing.
I grabbed the shield and raised it just in time to block the dragon's flame.
Sweat dripped down my shoulders as the fire hit the shield.
As I stepped back, the beast again breathes flames. I used the shield for protection. It was getting hot! I didn't
know how much longer I could stand it. Even with my god-like strength, I was feeling the heat!
As slowly moved back towards the ice room.
"Come on boy," I yelled as I continued to move back, "you can do better then that."
The dragon stuck it's head out of the darkness and hissed. It had purple scales all over it's long neck. It's head resembling an alligator with rows of sharp teeth like a shark.
"Come on!"
I stepped back into the Ice room with a splash. A puddle! It was working! The ice was melting!
I felt the dragon's fire again, the shield was beginning to melt.
I didn't know how much more of that fire I could take.
As I turned my head, I saw the frozen entryway melting.
I heard something hit the floor on the other side.
I turned my head to the other side of me and saw a black wooden stick about a foot long, it must have been locked it the ice above where I came in.
As the dragon hissed again, the stick began to glow.
'I wonder if that is the Ruyi Jingu Bang'
The dragon turned its head to the glowing stick.
Suddenly the small stick extended to several feet long as if by magic.
The dragon stepped back.
I made a grab for the Ruyi Jingu Bang
I heard the dragon whimper as the stick immediately grew even longer.
Was the dragon afraid of the staff?
No matter, the ice was melted and I could continue on my way.
The dragon backed into the darkness of the tunnel it came from as I walked through a deep puddle to get to the next room.
I continued to walk down the dark tunnel until I came to a sturdy wooden stretching over a deep, dark chasm. I could hear the wind whipping up from the darkness.
As I stepped onto the bridge, I heard the wooden planks groan under my weight.
Suddenly a large troll popped it's head out of the chasm. It had light brown skin, a pig's snout, red glowing eyes and horns protruding from it's head.
"No one crosses my bridge without paying first."
Of course, the story of Billy Goat gruff.
I reached into my pocket to check and see if I had any money.
I could easily have taken him out but the whole point of the test was for me to use my wits. I still had that sling in my pocket and there were tons of rock under my feet, but I didn't know if he was as sly as he appeared.
At last I found one copper coin in my pocket, I handed the troll the coin because I wanted to see if he was honest.
The troll snatched the coin from my hand and said, "The toll has just raised to two coins!"
So he was a dishonest just as I expected.
I pulled the sling out of my pocket with one hand and picked up I rock about the size of a baseball with my other hand.
"I paid you!" I said as I put the rock into the sling, "Just let me pass!"
The troll laughed.
"Or else what?"
That's it! He had his chance!
As soon as I started twirling the sling, I felt a magical influence taking over your body!
I cried out, "Death to the philistine!', and then I released the stone.
Bull's-eye! The rock hit the troll in the face and he fell into the chasm. I heard his scream until it faded away completely.
I walked across the bridge as the planks groaned again.
As I reached the center of the bridge, one of the planks fell into the chasm.
I dropped down on the bridge for a minute because I thought I was going to fall. The bridge did not fall.
I climbed back up to my feet and continued across the bridge.
I finally went across the chasm and continued to walk along the tunnel.
The next room was covered with yellow bricks.
It front of me was a dark corridor with a wooden post wedged in between the floor and ceiling.
I looked down at the ground and noticed a clear line across the floor, a trip wire?
I reached into my pocket and pulled out the Ruyi Jingu Bang.
I held the stick as it glowed again and grew about 2 or 3 feet long. Using the stick, I poked at the line.
Suddenly the wooden plank fell and the ceiling fell down with it.
"That was brilliant." said Hera, "You're better then I thought."
"Thanks"
The staff shrunk down to normal size again as I stuffed it into my pocket.
I continued walk along the corridor until a came to another set of double doors.
As I approached the door a stranger woman appeared from out of nowhere. She was dressed like Scarlett O'Hara. The woman was turned away from me and facing the door.
I was puzzled for a second, another test?
"Hello ma'am?"
I had gotten the attention of the mysterious lady. She turned around to face me and I saw to my horror that her face was devoid of flesh. I living skeleton!
I was frozen in fear for a moment.
"Come to me..." The woman said as she reached her boney fingers out to me.
'No ghost...'
I reached into my pocket as I fell backwards.
The women jumped on top on me as I opened to jar of no-ghost.
The gel substance fell out of the bottle and covered the skeleton woman. A foul smell filled the air.
After a few seconds, the skeleton woman screamed as she quickly faded away.
I got back up to my feet and dusted myself off.
"Good thinking boy!" said Aphrodite.
I opened the double doors and found myself in a small room made of gray bricks. There was a wooden ladder comes up to the roof.
I examined the ladder to make sure that it was strong enough to hold my weight and then I climbed up.
The ladder led outside onto the roof.
I climbed up onto the flat roof and looked around.
The sky was very dark, no stars or moonlight.
Suddenly I great beast appeared from out of nowhere. It was a light blue dragon with wings and sharp teeth. The beast hissed at me.
'This must be the wyvern.'
I reached for the Ruyi Jingu Bang and held it up into the air as the wyvern opened his mouth as if it was ready to eat me.
A white flame arose from the staff and hit the wyvern in its face. The beast exploded into a million pieces with a loud bang that made my ears ring.
My quest was over!
"Well done boy," said Hera, "Now I can add the power from the Ruyi Jingu Bang and the wyvern to you."
"Well," I said, "How do I do now? I'm not strong enough yet, am I?"
"Absolutely not." Said Hera, "You must return to your training. Hades will allow you to train with some of the greatest fighters from the past."
"Hamato Yoshi? My father's Sensei?"
"Yes, William." Said Hermes, "He will be training you too."
The world around me began to change again and I was back in the world of white tile floor and my house just a few feet away. Mom, Dad and Reggie were standing in front of me.
"How did you do my boy?" Asked Dad.
"I got this magic staff." I told him as a pulled the Ruyi Jingu Bang out of my pocket.
"Sun Wukong's magic staff?" Said Mom, "That's nothing, look what I got." My mother reached into the pocket of her gi and pulled out a miniature silver sword that immediately grew large. Excalibur?
"Check this out." Said my father as waved his hand and made a gnarled olive-wood club with spikes of it appear in his hand. It was the club of the great Heracles.
"And what kind of magic item did you get on your quest auntie?" I said with a snicker.
Aunt Reggie smiled as she made a wooden mallet-like object appear in her hand. It had a spherical head mounted on a shaft, with a spike on the top. The Gada of Shiva?
"It looks like all of us got prizes." Laughed Mom.
Just then a door opened from the outside world and a large man stepped into the room of nothing.