The moonlight was subtle, reluctant almost, as if it dared not reveal what the darkness shrouded, ultimately settling for being a scarce offering to the land below, barely illuminating the desolate dusty terrain the final candidates threaded on as they marched to the blackpost.
All six of them moved in a group; however, there was a clear divide among the lot. A group of two separate teams, one of which was blindfold, robes, and the elf—an alliance that seemed to have been formed even before they had begun the trial.
The other part of the group, well split by an unspoken flare of enmity, were Aldric, Asari, and Muscles. The first two already had an established partnership. As for Muscles, just like purple eyes, whatever trust he had mustered for the elf and the other two died.
It was expected. What wasn't, though, was the shift in his demeanor. Aldric had already noticed that his impulsive personality could be a front for him to be underestimated, but what he didn't expect was for him to drop said personality this early. He made no snarky comments at the girl's death or laugh about it in expected fashion.
Perhaps he realized these people he stood amongst are not ones he would want underestimating him. There won't be a sheep-eat-tiger situation, only cold death.
His request to join Aldric and Asari was frontless, simple, and very genuine:
"I can't trust them, it seems, and honestly, I can't trust you both either... But I'm sure you two don't have a prior relationship, so we'll be a team of strangers, not a stranger with a team of allies."
Aldric and Asari were quick to accept Muscles, as much for his words as it was for their shared hate for the other three. As most know, an enemy of an enemy is a good tool.
On the surface, still having partnerships within the group of six would seem to be pointless; after all, they had no plans to kill any more deadweight, and they all shared the same goal and simply needed to work together.
But to see limits to a man's greed is a vital step towards being a fool.
They wouldn't settle for lower percentages of the First's blessings if given a chance for more. Eventually, the necessity of numbers would soon lose value, perhaps as the trial progresses and it takes less to finish it. In the end, if only one lost man remains, it is possible all six of them would not be needed to kill him, and what that simply meant is all six of them would not be needed alive.
---
Aldric followed behind as a blind man navigated their destination with terrifying efficiency. After hours of dry dust and walking, the silhouette of the black post began to come into view. Not because they got closer, but instead because the light of a rising sun had begun to crawl up from the horizon.
The black post, as its name suggested, was a display of dark-aged bricks that made up a considerably large castle. It blended so perfectly with the night that even if they stood before it, they would not have sighted it. Strangely, not a single flare of light could be seen from it, not even the glow of flame torches.
The castle rose in jagged and pointy streaks as if in opposition to the heavens. It sat atop a hill, and below it were smaller buildings. It looked like an estate for some lords.
They stopped a good distance from the black post gates. With the warm rays of the morning sun chasing out the thick darkness, they weren't able to get too close without the possibility of being spotted.
"The Black post is a military hold, meaning there are numerous guards stationed around. Fighting all of them would only put us at a disadvantage. We would need to infiltrate the main castle, and if possible, assassinate Hariga and Sinus without a fight."
"And I'm assuming you have plans for such, detailed alternative entry points?" Asari asked.
"Yes, just follow my lead, and by the time they spot us, it'll be too late."
'Tch, what bullshit.'
As Blindfold spoke, a dark mist had slowly and almost un-noticeably already begun to occupy the ground, and in a few moments, it had grown thicker and more dense, fully submerging all their legs in it.
"What is this?" Robes exclaimed, noticing it along with the others, but it was already too late.
They struggled as hard as they could, yet they were unable to move their legs even an inch and could only watch in shock and horror as the mist crawled higher up their bodies.
"This... Magic?" Blindfold muttered, Aldric seeing panic on his face for the first time. "Sinus knows we are here!"
They struggled pointlessly until eventually, the mist had reached their necks, and they began to feel themselves lose consciousness as it crept towards their faces.
As they fought a losing battle to remain conscious, shock and panic etched onto the faces of all of them, well all of them except Aldric, who simply let out a sigh of exhaustion.
Then, soon enough, they all lost consciousness.