In this space where only the mind was present, time would pass unknowingly. It was time that made the mind grow tired from the eternal darkness, and Deldion's consciousness slowly drifted to sleep.
Unbeknownst to Deldion, darkness twisted into thin strings around Deldion's sleeping mind. The strings weaved in intricate shapes and forms before coming together to form what seemed to be a black skull speckled with shining stars. After the darkness completed the formation of the skull, it weaved more rapidly and formed the spine and ribs. While the darkness was weaving, tendrils of black starry flesh protruded out from the mind and wrapped itself around the skull.
Eyes, with serene grey irises, grew from the sockets of the skull and flesh tangled about before tightening and positioning itself to form the muscles on the face. Soon, the mass of flesh stopped its chaotic movements as it completed the coverage of the skull and new flesh swarmed like tentacles as they wrapped themselves around the bones weaved by the darkness.
Skin that showed speckled stars appeared like patches on the muscles of the skull and came together to form Deldion's sleeping face. The wild tendrils of flesh completed their task in forming the muscular structure of the prince's body, and skin swiftly grew to cover the physique. Before long, Deldion's eyes fluttered open to witness his true surroundings: the night sky.
At least, it was a view one would see at night. Every where he looked, Deldion would see the shining stars. Their brilliance, which is so far away, was comparable to the light of the sun. Each star seemed to be calling and pulling him towards themselves, offering promises through their light. The stars' callings were intense to the degree that parts of his starry body would unweave itself before tangling back together.
The young prince was in awe of this scenery. The beauty that blessed his eyes was, in ways, ethereal and eternal. It was a beauty that couldn't be hoped to be achieved by mortals. The novelty of the scenery soon dulled by a fraction, allowing for Deldion to observe his body. For some strange reason, the prince could feel the absence of all of his organs except the mind, even his manhood was not sparred from being absent. This certainly dismayed Deldion, but it did not stray his focus from the true essence of this space.
This was the Trials of the Gods. It was the first step towards becoming something more than human. Deldion's excitement caused him to clench his fist and focus on the unraveling and weaving of his starry body. The star that calls for Deldion the most is his trial.
Very swiftly, Deldion was able to pinpoint a general direction in which he should travel. He positioned his body in that direction and took his first step. Immediately, an unfamiliar sensation invaded his mind. It was a feeling that informed him that he could choose to sink, rise, or remain his elevation within the space. Deldion once again focused on his body to find his calling and once again began the journey to his trial.
He slowly sunk with every step of his way. A hundred steps, a thousand steps, ten thousand steps, a hundred thousand steps had passed, yet Deldion seemed no closer to any Star than his starting point. Still, he pressed on. A million, ten million, a hundred million steps later, Deldion stopped his advance. His eyes were empty, his back was hunched, and his arms hanged from his shoulders as he looked towards the stars that were calling for him. This action seemed to rekindle a flame in Deldion as he continued to sink towards his trial.
Deldion had lost count of the number of steps he took long ago. Now, he counts the number of times he had stopped. Ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times he had stopped and looked in the direction of his calling. He was closer to the stars, but at the same time, his constantly unraveling and weaving body became more painful. The constantly shifting body was only small and itchy at first, yet as he got closer to the stars, the area of the unraveling and weaving became larger. Sometimes, parts of his body would even tear before mending itself.
Pain was ever present, and it relentlessly prevented Deldion from resting his mind. To a certain point, Deldion has even lost count of the number of times he would stop. The only thought in his mind was to keep walking in the humongous void. He would walk despite the experience of having his body torn to bits and coming back together over and over again. Deldion's mind has gone far beyond its limit. In a way, Deldion has become broken, but he had reached his trial.
Deldion's dull eyes regained life as he saw the star that was calling him. It was as if all the pain and loneliness had left him as he looked at the majestic black star. Slowly, the star condensed and twisted into the form of a raven. Its beak was lustrous and reflected the stars in the darkness, its wings spanned farther than the edges of the world, and its humongous eyes stared curiously at the young prince.
Deldion felt his mind crumble and his body dissipating from simply staring at the creature. It was only after a moment before the sensation paused and a charming voice entered his mind.
"I must say, your journey was quite a boring one."
There was no contempt or arrogance from the voice. It was simply stating a fact.
"However, it did present your will and mind marvelously! As a reward, your trial shall be quite easy."
Deldion almost smiled in delight by the Raven's comments but suppressed it. A god's definition of easy is vastly different from what a mortal perceives as easy. Deldion's thoughts were confirmed as his surroundings changed into a blood-soaked battlefield.
"Now, let's get started, shall we?"
In the corner of his eye, Deldion saw the raven god smile mischievously.