Aldric, having gone through the dungeon rift, expected a similar experience as he went through the gateway, but it was far from it—as he stepped through, the world seemed to tilt; his vision, already blurry, began to flood with gold streaks he couldn't discern.
His body felt as if it was being flung around at random, causing him to feel what was akin to seasickness, but a hundredfold.
Then with a loud thud, it stopped.
Aldric let out a groan of pain and discomfort as he slowly turned on the ground that, as expected, did little to cushion his fall; however, it was far better than it could have been—he felt no broken bones.
Aldric shook his head, almost as if to dispel the aches that began to plague it, and with reflexive flinches, he attempted to open his eyes, the orange of a setting sun pouring on his face.
"Where... The hell am I?"
Aldric, eyes now open, began to scan around him to make out his surroundings. First, he noticed the mossy ground beneath him and the scatter of leaves; then, as he surveyed, he noticed the emerald green of the surrounding trees scattered almost sparsely across.
'A forest?' Aldric thought as he stood to his feet.
Turning fully around, not far from him were six other individuals. They looked at him with what might have either been surprise or disappointment. Aldric, however, seemed more keen on discerning where he was rather than what these strangers felt about him.
"This one seems off," a young man clad in what looked to be a priest's robe, probably twenty at most, commented as he scrutinized Aldric, who paid him no mind, still trying to figure out the situation.
"Yeah, he does," another young man added, his eyes wrapped by a white cloth that matched his long hair and with a sword by his side, Aldric's body tensed and his jaw clenched as he saw him.
[After many tests throughout the universe, the seven final candidates have been chosen, and you all gather here today.]
The sound echoed in Aldric's head rather than something he heard with his ears.
[The Firsts applaud your efforts. For the final trial, you all shall be after the same goal, and if the goal is completed, all alive candidates will be chosen as servants of The Firsts and receive their blessings equally.]
[You all will be sent details on your trial.]
Aldric glanced at the panel that materialized to the side as he began reading its content.
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You have been brought to a forgotten past, a time when the Expanse was still young and pure. When the Lost Men still roamed the land, their atrocities staining existence, and the Firsts were displeased.
Find all three of the Lost Men and end their blasphemous lives.
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The instructions were simple, well, at least as simple as something this outrageous could be. Basically, Aldric and the other strangers before him would need to kill these 'Lost Men,' but the problem with that is he couldn't kill anyone here—not because of any moral standards, but rather due to his inability.
If he is truly in the Expanse like he read on the screen before him, then everyone in this realm is far above him in strength. As he remembers, for a person to go into the Expanse, they'll need to be a Tier Three Warrior rank, although Aldric had not believed that until watching a Tier Two Warrior explode right in front of him at a gateway.
'But how am i here while being a tier zero?'
Furthermore, if existences like the Firsts, whatever they are, wanted people dead, then it was safe to assume those people weren't average individuals.
[You all must be careful as creatures and men roam the land, as well as this very forest you reside in; however, you may not leave until the trial begins at nightfall.
Best of luck, candidates.]
"Well, I believe you are all smart enough to know our best option is working together," a girl said, her raspy voice contrasting her beautiful face, with clear purple eyes that seemed as enticing as they were dangerous. Her hair cascaded down her back carelessly, fluttering ever so gently in the slight wind.
"Why? What if I want all the blessings for myself?" Another of the six spat. He was a bulky, muscled man with dark eyes.
Aldric currently did not care about any blessings, but his fists clenched at the man's words because he understood eventually, a conversation would be had—one that would put his own survival in question, either through being killed by the people before him or being left alone, which could possibly mean the same fate.
"I'm sure you've heard stories of the Lost Men. Do you believe you can take them all down?"
Purple eyes asked muscles with a great level of certainty in his answer to her question—of course, he couldn't, however, muscles was not one to admit that.
"None of what they practiced had been well developed at this time, even though they originated it... I'm sure it won't be as difficult as you all think."
"I'm certain you have all noticed by now," the blindfolded swordsman spoke. "Our abilities are unusable, and our strength has been suppressed. It seems we can only fully rely on our markings in this trial. Being reckless won't suffice... We will need to work together, however..."
'Here it comes,' Aldric's eyes narrowed.
"There's no point in sharing the blessings with dead weight. We will only need to keep a team of candidates who can significantly assist in the trial. What point is there in working for others, just to reduce a share of our rewards?"
Aldric wasn't shocked or surprised one bit. Just like everyone else since hearing the trial details, they had all expected this. There was no use in sharing these blessings so important to them with those who had no use in obtaining them.
"So what happens to the ones who are of no use? We leave them behind?"
Aldric knew very well the answer to his own question. However, what was important wasn't the answer but the question itself. Currently, the worst he could do was show any sign of weakness, and by asking this, he set up an opportunity to display false confidence, which he already began by saying "'we' leave them behind", implying he wouldn't be one of the ones of no use.
"No... We kill them."
Blindfold's reply was cold and brutal, yet no surprise to anyone there. If they were to leave these weakest links to roam, and they survive while the team deemed useful clears the trial, the weakest links would still receive the First's blessings with no effort, leaving those who worked for it at a disadvantage.
"Ah," Aldric responded, an unreadable tone.
His plan became simple the moment he had heard everyone's strength was suppressed; he could simply excuse his inability as suppression while mixing silence and bluff just the right amount to survive. After all, they had no way of knowing the truth, right?
"So how do we tell who's dead weight and who's not?" Muscle asked. His confidence could be a facade as well, but there was no way to tell.
"Well, simple," the man in robes chimed in. "My marking allows me to read the strength of others."
'Crap.'