"Welcome to Trail 3 Frozen wast land!
Hunt the boss before the ice melts
Completion: 5,300,000 Coins, and skills Failure: Death
Good Luck"
I watched the world change around me into an ice world. This is the level that would be the most dangerous to me. We were now on a block of ice and I was regretting my decision of skill. The moment the world stopped swirling in front of my eyes, I saw monsters in the thousands running toward me.
The monsters charged in waves. With the larger grotesque monstrosities in the back. While those in the front were small beings that were pig faced green goblins. The goblins wielding weapons made of ice, that they swung around wildly. The elves I saw had dark blue skin as they ran forward just behind the goblins. Their dark blue clothing wasn't rated for the weather they were running in.
I froze, looking at all the enemies running my way. I heard the people that spawned behind me yell before charging at the monsters. They were attacking the monsters the monster with everything they had. Looking around, I saw some people were running away. Watching I could only hear they pounding of feet along with war cries. The icy wind snapped me out of the trance. Still wearing a tank top from the last challenge, I felt the wind cut through my arms. The monsters charging towards me and knew that I didn't have time to up it on right now. I gripped my bag still in my hands from giving Mindy her gun. I closed the bag and threw it over my shoulder. Attempting to run on the ice, but it was slippery. Sliding as I move, making less progress than I had originally hoped to.
The monsters didn't have any problems noticing me. The ones that could break away from the attacking humans ran to those of us running away. I called the plants but felt nothing. There Was nothing here but ice and water. In the last trials, I could always feel the plants even if I wasn't next to them. Now there was this sensation that I couldn't explain. What was once a constant prickle at the back of my mind was nothing. I kept running as fast as I could, not daring to look back at the monsters. I needed time to cover and get my jacket.
While running with the others, I didn't see the drop of the ice into a slight slope. I stepped down, expecting the icy ground to find nothing for another few inches. I fell forward. The momentum from the few-inch difference in the ground threw my upper body into the ice. I flipped onto my back before sliding down the slope at increasing speeds. I saw monsters in my path. They were getting ready to catch me. I gripped the ice, trying to slow my descent into the monsters. My hands burned now and I would feel my fingers get cut. Streaks of blood tailed after me as I slid. My arm and hands cut from the ice trying to cling to the moisture in my skin. I slowed down enough to get a gun from my bag and grab my jacket. The monsters that were in my path were further away thanks to them, thinking I would slide right into them.
Once I had my jacket on, I lifted my gun and shooting. There were too many to focus on. So would shoot at one and move to the next even if I missed the shot. I couldn't let them get too close to me. While shooting, I tried to see if there were more people around me. I needed to join a group, as there were too many monsters for me to fight. I didn't have the time or energy to fight off so many. Unfortunately, I only saw a few people running away to my l left out of the corner of my eye.
Something smashed next to me. I jumped as I looked at the glass shards that scattered next to me. It was from a bottle. I looked up to see a hoard of monsters running my way. They were sliding down front as he left where the people I briefly saw were. I didn't have to be a genius to know what happened. Some monsters were like those out of a video game. The largest of the monsters was a blue and pink ogre that was towards the back of the group. The ogres were about 10-12 ft tall. While there were a bunch of goblins running my way. Some goblins were tiny compared to the giant orgers, and in any other situation, I would be laughing. I would not stave off the enemies that were coming my way.
Bam Bam Bam Bam
The sound of the thundering steps was rushing toward me. I turned from my place on the floor. Only one chance to survive this. I didn't have any other skills to my name that would work.
Using heat vision, and the world turned red. I could see the outlines of the things I hadn't burned yet. I saw the lines get erased from view. My vision didn't come back, in its place agonizing pain shot through my eyes. Grabbing my eyes, pressing my palms into them. I curled up as much as I could, trying to make the pain go away. I felt something hot and wet on my palms. Someone is screeching. I wondered where the sound was coming from. I took a breath, and the screaming cut off before starting again. The screaming was me, and I needed to stop or the monsters would kill me.
I heard the failure crunch of footsteps coming toward me. They were slow but steady. "Hey, you okay?" I heard a thick accent ask me. I tried to answer, but the pain was too great. Nothing but screams of pain or whimpers, if I could quiet enough, would leave my mouth. "I saw… What happen?" The accent asked. Their voice high and quite. As if they were talking to a wild animal. I would have felt annoyed at it if my eyes weren't melting down my face, leaving trails of molten lava.
Anger at them asking me anything while my eyes were melting out of my head caused me to lash out. "I PICKED THE WRONG FUCKING SKILL WHAT HAPPENED!" I lashed out, my hands filling with something that I couldn't tell. My eyes burned like I had stared at the sun without blinking while spraying pepper spray into my eyes. I didn't know what the liquid flowing out of my eyes was, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was blood.
I felt a hand on my back. It didn't move for a moment before rubbing in circles. The slow movement was calming. "It going to be okay, I'll stay here," I heard them trail off. The pain was getting worse than I could only feel it. All sound disappearing from the world.
Gasping awake, I found myself in what looks like a shack. The walls were made of wood that had holes in them. They creaked as the wind whirled by, sending chills into the room. I could see again and the pain was gone, but the memory was still fresh. I looked down at my left arm, which was strangely warm. I saw a green jacket around me, warm and thicker than the one I was given. "Why can't I go through this without the pain?" I asked, lifting my arm above my eyes. When were this tower's trials gonna give a little?
I heard the door open and turned to look. I looked to find a beautiful woman with skin rich dark brown. She would look like an ethereal benign if she added a hint of gold to her. Whether that was in blush or clothing choice. She walked like a cat on a mission. Her green uniform stood out against her skin. The green uniform was the same color as the jacket I was now wearing. This person must have been the one that saved me.
"Wow, you're beautiful," I said, stunted at the beauty before me. If I was straight, I would try my best to flirt with her.
"Obrigado," she laughed, sitting down next to me with a bowl in her hands. It looked like some kind of chicken noodle soup. It made my mouth water was looking at it.
"That voice, you came to my rescue," I recalled, not taking my eyes from the soup. I couldn't remember much at that moment other than the kind hand rubbing my back and the last words I heard. "Who are you, and where am I?" I asked, sitting up. The moment made my head swirl a moment before settling.
"I'm Bruna Silva. This was the cabin I spawned next to when I entered the level. I saw a light and ran that way to find you." She sat down next to me, handing over the bowl of soup. "You need food," she said, smiling.
"Thank you,"
"Obrigado," she pronounced. "I save you, you speak my language,"
"Obrigado" I repeated. Tasking the soup it was the best thing I had ever eaten. Again, I might say that as I haven't had a home-cooked meal since trial one. Which felt like years ago by now.
"Close enough," she shrugged with a soft smile on her face. Got up and walked to her bag. It looked the same as mine but was green instead of red, white, and blue. It was the Governments idea to code our bags so that we would know where the person came from. That way, if someone died next to you, you could find them and tell their families. The uniforms were a similar concept though with more muted colors to help us hide. She took out what looked to be a crochet hook and some yarn.
"You could bring that?" I asked, surprised. Sargent Payton said that we weren't allowed to bring anything, but the items on the allowed lists. The only exception being the firecrackers, that she personally shoved into our bags.
"Why not? I only brought this small yarn thou, so I take apart what I make and redo it," she answered me, moving to sit down when she saw my bowl. I wanted to ask about how she got permission to even get that much into the tower. My mouth was full of food so I would have to wait a moment to ask. "You finished it already?" She asked, blinking at the empty bowl.
"Yeah, I was hungry. Thank you for the meal it was, delicious" I, said putting the bowl down. I threw my legs over the side of the bed to sit up more. "For the food and the save," I added.
"Well as thanks for for saving you, I have questions," she said, setting the yarn down on her lap. "What was it you used?"
"It was heat vision. I got it as a skill for completing the last trial," I answered. Her eyes borrowed into mine as she thought for a moment.
"That explains why you were in so much pain. What level is it at?" She asked. Never once looking away from my eyes. I would almost thing that she wasn't blinking if I didn't see it.
"Uh… good question, let me look," I muttered before commanding, "open." Pulling my eyes away from hers I looked at the screen. The anxiety that filled my lungs caused me to put my hands back together.
Noa Sanders: Level 46
Health: injured (left arm, hands, and shoulder blade)
Nature's sugar baby: level 40
poison Resistance: level 30
Heat vision: 2
Feather steps: level 15
Lucky: 4
"It looks like it's at level 2," I muttered, looking at the other level-ups that I had. I had leveled up during the last few days. I felt a little bit of pride while looking at the skill levels. It's been hard work but I was making great progress.
"Can I look?" She asked, tilting her head a bit. Instead of answering, I turned the screen to her. If she was gonna kill me, she would have left me for dead. She didn't need to save me or bring me here.
At first she looked at my skills with a blank look on her face. Then her mouth opened, and closed a few times. Her face drained of color as she touched the screen with her finger. She moved the screen around a bit. "At that level, how did you survive the last trials?" Bruna asked. I moved to look at which level she was talking about. She pointed at my main level.
"What do you mean? I got pretty strong," I said, trailing off toward the end. The look on her face didn't look happy.
"Open," Bruna commanded before turning her screen to me. It is then that I learned a few things. Bruna's status screen was the first one that I saw that wasn't mine. Her status had her age, which I couldn't see on mine. I assume that it's because I already knew my age. The most surprising part was that Bruna was two years younger than me.
Bruna Silva: Level 68 Age: 23 Health: healthy
Mama Bear: Level 85
Attraction: 81
Energy Constructs: 76
Mind resilience: 68
Deadly Bash: 84
Strength: 76
Commanding Grace: 56
Alliance Vision: 64
I was stunned at the skills and their levels. They were above mine by leaps and bounds. Even her natural skill was stronger than mine. I opened my mouth to say something, was closed it without a word. Trying again, I still couldn't find the words I was looking for. I must be like an unreliable person to her. Needing so much help after meeting her, and here she was, kicking ass and taking names. I should have been better about this whole thing. Maybe it would have been better if I stayed at the boot camp for another couple of months. If I talked to Sargent Payton about this, she would have helped me pay for the next boot camp. It would make me in debt to her, but at least I wouldn't be a burden to others in the tower.
Bruna was the first to say anything. I might have been staring at her status screen for a while before she said anything, though. "How did you survive the last few trials?" She asked, almost in a whisper.
"My natural skill, um…saved my life," I muttered, still staring at her status screen and the levels. I thought I was so strong when I wasn't hearing anything near that. There had to be a way to get stronger and be a better adult.
"Why can't it help, you know?" She pressed, putting away her status screen. It was like she did that to have me focus on her.
"It's a natural skill, with its own mind," I laughed, sounding pathetic. "During the first trial, it locked me away in an apartment. I spent the rest of the trail turning on lights and making noise. Until a poisons chameleon showed up and almost killed me," I said, looking at the floor. I know I wasn't had any help during that trial, but I was trying my best. Now that I knew how pathetic I was, I should have fought harder to take on more monsters in the last two trials. She stared at him, shocked, before muttering something I didn't hear. I continued to explain things. "In the last trial, I got bitten and ended up finding a lab where Mindy made a cure. I haven't been able to use brute force to get out of these challenges yet."
Bruna stayed quiet for a while before talking. "Você é um salvador idiota," she said, shaking her head, exasperated.
"HEY! I heard idiot in that!" I exclaimed, looking up from the ground. I might be weak, but I wasn't an idiot. My only good quality that I decent bright. Even my dad would admit to that, and he wouldn't admit that I was even alive. I got this far, being this weak and pathetic. I know it is my brain helping me along. Well, that, and that my natural skill is the best.
"If you use plants as your skill, can you grow them from seeds?" She ignored me.
"I think so. I've never tried thou,"
"Here" She handed me a handful of cashews. "Grow these".
I looked down at my hand to see cashews. I stared blankly at them for a moment before looking back at Bruna. "These are nuts," I stated.
"Do you want to live?" I nodded. "grow" she demanded. I turned my attention to the nuts. I using my skill to ask them to grow. It took longer than usual for there to be a reaction to my request. It went from nothing to everything all at once. The feeling of the plants living nearby. I sighed in relief at the feeling of having plants back in my life.
My hands to see that almost all the cashews grew into sprouts. There were a few left that hadn't grown. I didn't care though, as I am happy that they were even this much. Bruna, who stood by the door, waiting. I smiled and shimmied my bag off my shoulder enough to reach in and grab the gun I had been using earlier.
"Shall we fight together?" I asked, standing. Placing the seeds in my pocket. I was as careful as I could be about it. Once I had my bad and hood on my back, I place the sprouts on my hood.
"Why do you think I'm waiting for you?" She huffed. I could tell that she wasn't really upset with me because of her smile.
When we left the shack, there were plenty of monsters waiting for us. Bruna ran forward, attacking the ones that charged when they saw us. I lined up my shot and kept shooting them. I shot around Bruna, not wanting to hit her. That left anything too close in her hands. Bruna's skill in the sword she welded masterfully. She moved with persist movements, slicing through the enemies with little resistance. I kept my focus on the monsters that were far from us. Giving back up whenever a monster tried to attack while Bruna's back turned.
PING PING
"Congratulations, you have earned the skill Sharp shooter,"
The system called out. Flinching and missed the shot I took because of its announcement. I never got over how it always chose the worst times to announce that you got a skill. A moment where you had to focus? Guess what you get a skill called 'focus' or something of the like? I don't think that I will get over that soon.
It is because I watching that I saw a monster take a running start at Bruna. It was too close to do anything other than yell 'ON YOUR LEFT' before the monster and Bruna locked in a fight. Bruna had the underhand having been ambushed. Her sword was too long for the now fist-to-cuff fight. She fought hard but backing towards the edge of the iceberg.
"You're getting close tot he edge!" I called out, still shooting the other monsters. I didn't want them to get the upper hand by attacking Bruna all at once. Bruna used the momentum from the monster running at her and flung it over her shoulder into the water. She gasped right after. I turned to look at what making her react like that. I saw the monster as it fully melted into the water without another word.
Bruna and I looked at each other. We had a new plan. I worked my way to stand next to her, right in front of the edge of the iceberg. Setting my gun away, and took the knife from my side. I wasn't gonna waste bullets if I didn't have to. We fought and dodged the enemies running toward us. I long since lost count of how long we were fighting the monsters off. Until the sunset and the monsters showed no signs of slowing down.
"Fuck," I gasp, dodging another monster. I'm moving slower than before and now breathing hard. I had been working on this for hours. Looking over, I saw Bruna wasn't much better. Her arms were shaking from fighting off all the enemies so far. I remember hearing that this was the worse trial out of the five. You had to hope that the monster boss had taken care of before you died of exhaustion. If I remembered correct The Cursed had this trial first.
"How about we sink the iceberg?" I asked, watching an enemy melt away into the water.
Bruna snapped to look at me. "What?" she demanded.
"All the enemies will die, and with the iceberg being underwater, they won't be able to re-spawn," I said, looking her in the eyes. I knew I could do this. She stared at my eyes for a moment before focusing back on the monsters still attacking. I could tell that she was still thinking about it as we fought. It is a crazy idea that would hardly work.
"We would have to get to the center of the iceberg," Bruna said, making me flinch. They were on the edge of the iceberg and would have to fight their way through hundreds if not thousands of enemies to get close to the center. She looked at me. "You're positive you can sink it?" She asked.
"I'm gonna use the plants you gave me to grow large enough to weight down the iceberg and sink it," I said, smiling at her. I can do it. Just needed the time to grow the plants.
Bruna nods before taking a deep breath. 'I want to take him to the center and protect him,' she chanted, as she chanted her voice took on an echo. When the change came over her I took a few steps back. She grew taller and muscle growing over her limbs. She bent over in as her bones crackled and pooped. My jaw dropped as she stood before me like a bear. A huge brown bear that looked meaner than anything I had ever seen.
Shocked I stared to her wordlessly. When a large paw reached out and swiped me into the air. Gasping for breath I worried that I was going to die here. When I landed with a groan. Only having a moment to realize the situation, Bruna was running. With me on her back to where I could only guess was the center of the ice berg.
We were running past monsters of all sorts. They weren't able to keep up with us as Bruna ran. I turned my attention to the cashew sprouts. Reaching behind my head I tempted to grab onto them. With Bruna running and bouncing me around I almost dropped them as I reached into my hood. My stomach turned from the jostling that being on the back of a bear. Holding on with one hand I managed to grasp at the sprouts. I felt them yelp in pain in my mind. The wind swishing past me so quickly that my eyes couldn't stay open longer than a moment. Pulling the sprouts close to my chest I focused on growing the plants as we ran.
When Bruna started to slow down I began to open my eyes. There was nothing but ice around us. I slowly got down trying to not fall to the floor. My legs shook from the ride, but I focused on the sprouts. If this plan was going to work I would have to use every ounce of energy I had to grow the plants. There was no time to laze about with them.
I took a few breaths when I heard a voice calling out to us. I turned to see a group of people walking our way. They wore different uniforms from the other countries. I saw a few of the same navy blue that I was wearing. The one calling out to us was wearing a red and white uniform. They had a hand up high waving at us. They were still a distance away from us, so I choose to focus back on the plants. When I heard the voice closer than before. Looking back up the guy was now much closer to us. His uniform was clean and he showed no signs of being cold.
"Hey! are you okay over here?" He asked getting closer. Something about him was off. I couldn't place my finger on it.
I frowned "We're fine, thank you."
"You can join our group, We're going around trying to find the spawn point of the monsters." He said with that same smile as before. He never looked at Bruna as he spoke.
"No thank you, We have a plan of our own," I said smiling at him. I turned my attention back to the plants in my hands. Though I waited to grow them.
"Okay, we'll be heading to the west if you change your mind," He said stating to walk away. "Oh by the way my names is Kong."
"like king Kong?" I asked. The gears in my head turning. Something about that name rang a bell.
"Yeah, just like," Kong laughed before running back to his group. Just like earlier he managed to close the distance within a few moments. I watched from the corner of my eye. He must have a speed skill to close the distance that quickly.
Bruna let out a soft growl catching my attention. I smiled and patted her snoot. "I think we should wait a moment to let them get a little ways away," I said. My thoughts turned to how we would do that, we didn't have all day. When the sun goes down we will be sitting ducks in the open. It was already hard to fight off the monsters. The sun got closer to the horizon making the air freeze. "Lets do this" I said looking at Bruna. She sat still waiting. Her fur's warm and helped me hide from the cold wind.
I focused on the seeds in my hands and started growing them. It hurt and I felt them screaming about how cold it was here. I push them to keep growing though. After a moment the sprouts stopped complaining about the cold.
"What are you two doing?" I heard a voice say behind me. Spinning around I saw Kong. How did he get here?
"I have an idea," I said cradling the sprouts. Hiding the sprouts out of Kong's sight. I didn't want to fight with other people right now. I know some people loved this trial. All the kills gave you a chance to level up easily. Kong's face contorts in a strange way before smoothing out.
"What's your plan? Maybe I can help" He said taking a few steps closer. Bruna growled and I couldn't help feeling the same way. With Bruna agreeing with me about something being off about this man I decided to have him 'help'.
"Yeah, can you go gather as many people as you can?" I asked looking over the horizon. The ice berg is huge and only a small percentage was out of the water. Meaning that I would take a while to get everyone together, even if he could move quickly.
Kong stood there watching me for a moment. His eyes never leaving my hands which were hiding the sprouts out of sight. His eyes focused again turning the attention to me. With a smile he wave and ran back off. I wondered if he was heading where he came from. Shaking my head I made a promises to grow these before he got back.
Taking a breath I focused on the task at hand. The plants grew steady as I kept my focus. When I heard another growl from Bruna I had already managed to grow the sprouts into 5 ft trees. They were still thin and needed more time to grow but it was happening. The plants still complained about how cold it was. How lucky I was that they would grow in these conditions for me. Though most of that is what I imagined them to say.
When I heard a loud cry. I looked to the left of where the sun was setting. In the shadow of the sun there was a large group heading our way. They looked like they were moving quickly. Something about them seemed off. I couldn't place it but they didn't look quite human. Nor did they have the blue tint to their skin like the monsters did. "What are they?" I asked Bruna who was still growling. Spiting my attention to both the plants and the people rushing towards us. I needed a plan there was no way that I would be able to grow the plants large enough before the people got here., unless. "Bruna, I have an idea." I said with a smile. There was no time to weigh the options when there was only one real answer anyway. Focusing on the plants I forced myself into giving all the energy I had.
They felt the energy that I put forward and took it. The branches began to grow outward, splitting at every opportunity. The sprouts became one large tree instead of four smaller ones. Using the energy to grow together stronger. The slim trunk grew thicker and taller as it shot up in to the air. The branches reaching towards the people rushing us. I wasn't sure what the plants wanted to do but that wasn't the priority right now. I had to keep the energy going. My stomach turned and growled at me in warning. My vision swirled and would come in waves of clarity to dull burrs.
It didn't take as long as I thought to sink the iceberg. I thought I was going to be here for a while before the water to appear. Water already sloshing on the top of the surface. Only enough to be noticeable on the icy surface. I opened my eyes to glance around and found that the plants had not just been growing up, but out. It was like they were trying to cover as much of the iceberg as possible. The more surface they covered, the faster the ice sank into the water. The branches reached out to stop the people trying to get closer to us. While the roots grew in every direction. Roots digging they're way into the ice.
"What are you doing?" Kong asked, having run back when the water began to pail up. I didn't look at him, closing my eyes to focus on growing the plants. Even if I tried to look at him I would only end up hurting myself. Bruna growled at him and moved. I could hear the crunching of ice as she moved. I had to focus on growing the tree, so I left it to her.
Kong and Bruna fight for a bit when other people arrive and join in. I didn't hear the other people show up at first. The water is now beyond my ankle. I opened my eyes when I heard a battle cry and looked over. There were at least 20 people that were on Kong's side. Now that they were closer I could see that they all looked human. One lined up a spear at Bruna. I didn't want them to hurt her. I moved before I thought about it. The vines of the plants held onto the spear that had been thrown.
"Don't touch Bruna. She's using her skill, but she's one of us!" I yell at them. I could feel the growl in my voice more than I could hear it. The people facing me took a step back. I didn't know why they were reacting like that, but I wasn't at a point where I could stop growing the trees yet. "I'm trying to sink the iceberg to win the trial early," I said, watching them. No one moved for a moment. Getting to leave a trial early was almost never heard of. It would be a miracle if I could really do it. Now it was just up to them if they wanted to see if I could. If they decided they didn't want that then we would be fighting more then just each other in a few hours.
A sigh of relief left my body when they putting their weapons down. For now I had the chance to keep going. It wouldn't last forever though and I was already tired. I turned my attention back to growing the tree. My stomach turned hard making me flinch. I tried my best to not show the pain that I was in. I didn't want to show that I was week right now in front of everyone who was giving me a chance.
"Grrrrrr" Bruna warned. I turned in time to see Kong attack me. The man looked furious. The plants caught Kong before he could get too close to me. Kong moved back, face red and staring at me as thou they could cut. Bruna standing between the two of us again and the others turned their attention to Kong. The fighting again with everyone now rallying with Bruna. The problem was that Kong was a mimic monster. He copied both people and their skills once he sees them. I wonder why he hadn't tried to get a hold of my plants. When I felt the plants react at the back of my mind. It felt like they were smirking and puffing out their chest. I wondered if that meant that Kong was trying to get control of them, but they weren't listening to him.
The group of people keeps Kong's attention on them so that I can focus. I sink enough of the Iceberg into the water that Kong and the other monsters die. I could hear them scream as they were melting away. It was a unique scream they gave off when they were melting. The water is now up to everyone's knees. Kong losing his human for looking more monster-like as they fought.
I got the idea of splashing Kong with water. I had the vines gather as much water as they could before throwing it onto him. "HOW DARE YOU! I AM KONG" he yells before melting away into nothing. As his glare melted into the water. The deep blue that gave a seance that this wasn't over.
"Congratulations on making it to the end of trial one!!!! You did a good job!
Here are your rewards, pick a wonderful skill!! The ping from the coins going into my status screen let me know they transferred.
Liquification
Description: Ability to turn partially or completely into a liquid
Wallcrawling
Description: Ability to adhere to solid surfaces, including walls and ceilings
Healing factor
Description:Ability to heal rapidly and with greater finality from any injury; the rate of recovery varies from character to character. Can sometimes result in the slowing of aging, regenerating entire human limbs and organs without hindrance from the Hayflick limit by completely removing it and immunity to illnesses and other defects.