Jessica stood in a red velvet room, looking around cautiously. Though other than four doors with a suit labeled overtop, there was nothing of note. She didn't understand what was going on at all but did feel a certain attraction to one of the doors. The one with a clear black spade above it.
Still, she did not give in to those urges, opting to walk up to all the doors and try to observe them closer, like she was trying to play Spot the Difference.
However, she was unable to come to any meaningful conclusions.
In the end, the only thing left for her was to make a choice. To go with what she was attracted to, or instead take a gamble on one of the other doors. She thought about it for a little while before realizing that there was seriously no way for her to know the right one.
While it may have been a trap, she simply decided to follow the sense of attraction and slowly pushed open the door. The moment she did, the sounds of a rough wind immediately came through, along with a bleak sky with vague black figures moving through the air.
She immediately began to regret her decision, but the other doors behind her warped, disappearing entirely before the entire room began to shrink rapidly. In the end, Jessica was only left with the option of hurrying on forward, and when she turned around, whatever that room was supposed to be disappeared entirely. What was left was a graphite road surrounded by short and near black grass.
Jessica looked upwards warily, seeing small black figures go by in the distance. Some of them were fairly clearly crows, but others looked like pieces of debris, and the others were complete enigmas.
The road behind her disappeared into a gray fog far far away.
When she turned back to look in front, she noticed that the road suddenly ended up ahead. After walking a little bit closer, she could make out what appeared to be a person. He was wrapped up in black cloth, along with a hood. The only exposed parts of the person were part of their face and hair.
It appeared to be a young man no older than twenty. His eyes were lifeless, and his hair light gray. There was a plain white mask with a diagonal crack, only the bottom half remaining. Though what was quite concerning, was that two crows were holding onto what appeared to be a double-handled katana, and were floating uncomfortably close to his neck.
Despite the fact the blade came dangerously close to his neck multiple times, the young man didn't react at all, and in fact, hung his head low.
Jessica was a bit baffled for a moment before rushing on forward.
"Are you ok? Do you need help?"
She was honestly unsure if the young man was actually a corpse or not. However that suspicion turned out to be false as he slightly tilted his head upwards. The crows floated upwards ever so slightly, keeping the blade incredibly close.
"Mm... no I do not."
Jessica blinked a few times, not sure what to make of what she was looking at.
"A-Are you sure?"
The man nodded, causing the blade to nick the bottom of his neck.
"Yes. After all, I am simply a test. It's to see if you are cruel enough to behead a man that is defenseless in front of you."
Jessica opened and closed her mouth a few times. Despite receiving a supposed explanation, she only became more confused as to what was happening. With furrowed brows, she contested what he said.
"That can't be right. Why would there be a test of cruelty? Shouldn't it be one of capability of some kind? Besides, the last one allowed both players to come out victorious."
The man's eyes narrowed slightly, implying he was smiling. He let out a chuckle.
"That could hardly even be considered a test. It's more of a filter to get rid of the complete cowards that are not fit for this place. The test now is for you to enter the true heart of this place. The tasks you must complete are related to the ones that a certain person had once done before. Which is why you must kill me."
Jessica's face twitched. She crouched down with a slightly pained expression.
"That... I don't really understand, but whatever it is, killing you can't just be the only option."
The young man looked up at her with genuine confusion. After a few moments, he burst out in laughter.
"You really are a strange one, aren't you? For most people, this is the easiest part of the test. In fact, most people didn't even need me to give them an explanation. I struggle to understand how you can be this naive, should you be sincere."
Jessica fully got down on her knees to look at him, clearly quite concerned.
"Why would it be strange for someone to care for someone else?"
In response, he took a deep breath.
"There was a time when I thought the same thing. However, it does not matter what you want to do. If you do not wish to perish here by malnutrition or dehydration, then you must do so."
His eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
"Do not worry about me. I will not die regardless, and I do not wish for a kind person like you to be held back. Though this is not the only thing you will be tested on. There are two other further trials. If it is you, then I do not mind sharing my knowledge of them.
Jessica was a bit taken aback, though before she could say anything, the young man continued on.
"After you behead me, the road will continue. You must follow it, until you find a horde of faceless that will attempt to kill you. It is not enough to simply slay them. Instead, you must make them fear you. So long as you torture one of them brutally enough, the rest will be too afraid to make any advances."
He let out a small sigh.
"Afterwards, comes the part that most people are unable to cross. The last part of the road consists of an onslaught of crows that will all attempt to attack you. You must run for half a day's march. While the crows are finite, they are relentless. There have been those that passed with incredible movement capabilities, though they are fairly rare. Is there anything in need of clarification?"
Jessica remained silent for a few seconds, taking all of it in. She shook her head.
"No, you were very clear. But... I don't want to do it."
The young man gently closed his eyes.
"Haha... you are so tender. But you must harden your heart to do this at the very least. If you cannot, the higher floors will rip you apart. While you may not understand, the quicker that you do so, the less that I will suffer. My only request is that you perform my execution swiftly, so that what can be considered as death comes quickly."
When he opened them, he stared at her with glimmering eyes, that spoke of their genuine intention.
"I believe in you."
Jessica wanted to say something more, but was unable to come up with anything. She remained there silently for a while, staring at the ground. Once she looked back up, those same eyes were looking back at her.
Though reluctant, Jessica did end up reaching out to the handles of the katana. The crows flew away just before she grabbed onto them, seamlessly transitioning it to her hands. She swallowed nervously, trembling almost like she wasn't ready to hold onto the blade so soon.
Her breathing destabilized, as her pupils continually dilated and constricted.
She tightened her grip and closed her eyes, seemingly committing. Tears just barely made it through, before she suddenly dropped the blade, covering her face in shame.
"I can't! I can't! I can't do it! No! No! NO!"
The young man appeared quite disheartened.
"...Then perhaps, you are not made for the floors above. While I cannot do much, I can watch over you before your gradual death. Or perhaps, you will change your mind before then, which I would welcome."
Suddenly, Jessica grabbed onto the sides of her head, moving back and forth slightly.
"Ah... AH!... AHHHHHHH!"
She appeared to genuinely be in pain. It was the young man's turn to be baffled. While he could understand reluctance, he did not understand how it could be so potent that it would cause a breakdown.
He opened his mouth, though before then, Jessica started yelling.
"NO! STOP IT STOP-"
Suddenly, she stopped, her head and arms suddenly falling limp, despite her body remaining in place. Then, she grabbed onto the blade with both hands before decisively lifting it upwards, beheading the man.
As his head flew in the air, he stared at Jessica curiously. Somehow, despite not having lungs or a neck, he spoke.
"Strange... was it deceit? No... that is something else. Something far more sinister."
His eyes closed.
"I suppose you will not have as much difficulty as I imagined."