The parasites writhed as they struggled against the blinding light. Their eyes were extremely sensitive to light, and the reason they were even in the deep jungle in the first place.
From the light came four shadows, each of different proportions. They swung their weapons and the parasites fell like flies.
A rapier struck out, piercing a confused parasite.
Then, a dagger left a flurry of cuts on another, smaller parasite.
A punch flew out, gauntlets decorated with spikes on the knuckles connected to a writhing body, knocking it down forever.
The gauntlets gave off a subtle purple glow after successfully finishing the opponent.
Yoel, now surrounded by the humans that had come to his aid, was flabbergasted.
All he could do was open his mouth in awe, the people in front of him were like an unbreakable shield, deflecting everything and anything.
Alas, now that he stood behind this protective wall, he could finally relax, letting his nerves be.
As soon as he did so, the exhaustion and fatigue he had been holding back launched at him all at once, like a starving wolf.
His eyes closed as if something heavy was weighing them down. And then, all that he saw became darkness.
***
Upon awakening, Yoel noticed that he no longer lay on hard and muddy dirt, instead, he was now sprawled on top of a wooden log, long leaves placed on him to keep him warm.
He was confused for only a second, he had realized this was the encampment of the group that had saved him.
Still dazed, however, it took a few moments to adjust his vision.
Once his vision has returned, he could perceive 4 other shadows, sitting around a campfire.
He was laid a bit further behind them, some sort of leaf construct had kept the harsh wind at bay from hitting his body.
Yoel felt thankful for the care he had received from his teammates. Originally, he had been almost paranoid to death to even lay down near them, but now the situation had changed.
He didn't really care, anymore.
"You're up already? Those bugs got you good." exclaimed Cole, his eyes fixated on the fire.
"We thought you were dead meat for a second. If someone wasn't so hesitant to bring you with us anyways, you probably wouldn't have awoken ever again." said Loki, a bit irritated and a bit prideful.
"Thank you for saving me. I did not expect to attract so much attention so fast. Thought it'd be a few days before encountering anything mildly dangerous." Yoel said as he tried to stand up, failing to do so due to his somewhat grave injuries.
He looked down at himself, half-expecting to see leaves instead of real bandages, but lo and behold, they were real.
He let out a low groan of pain and gave a thankful smile to the two. But he had also noticed something else.
"Weren't there two more with us? What happened to them?" before Yoel could let panic get to him once more, Loki answered.
"Oh, those two? They've been bickering with each other since the start of this damned exam. I believe both went out to gather firewood for the night, but they went their own ways."
"Isn't it very dangerous to go out alone? After what happened to me.. how could they be so careless?" Yoel said, worry creeping up his face.
"Ahh, you haven't seen those two fight yet, have you?" this time, it was Cole who answered.
"They are on a whole 'nother level. They fight like real experienced Blessed." said Cole with a shudder.
"And that girl.. her power is no pushover. Not only can she play support and shed light for the group with that luminous orb of hers, but she also does some serious damage."
"And don't even get me started on that Vasil guy, he seemed like a normal guy at first, but his battle style is so ruthless! It's like he's made a pact with the devil of slaughter or something, man!"
Yoel tilted his head at Cole's sudden outburst, it seems as if he had been grateful there was someone to talk to, that was at least on his level of skill.
"That so? What about that big guy, then?" said he, quite amused at Cole's explanation.
"Oh of course.. that guy doesn't even USE WEAPONS! HE BEATS UP MONSTERS WITH HIS BARE FISTS!" Cole said that last sentence a bit too loud, causing Loki's head to turn towards him.
Cole waved at Loki, hoping he hadn't heard what he was saying about him.
"So what you're trying to get at is, we won't be a match for these people.. unless..."
This was the moment Cole had tried to create. From the start of the conversation, he had been cultivating this interaction.
However, his attempts were quite obvious, at least to the recipient. Yoel had known his objectives long before he had brought up the subject.
"..we team up. Right?" finished Yoel, after he had momentarily stopped, to think it through.
Yoel would play along, after all he really had no choice. It was do or die, in this jungle.
Cole smiled and spoke up a bit louder this time.
"Great! Since I've noticed that you're a spear user, I could cover your back, or whatever misses your blade."
Cole remembered the declaration Yoel had made before they started. He knew that wielding a spear wasn't his only expertise, but it was the only one he had shown.
He had to base himself on what he saw, for now.
Yoel, having not practiced with a dagger as much as a spear, nodded in reply. It would be nice to only be worried about the front.
Cole nodded back and walked off. He was satisfied with what he had gained today.
Meanwhile, Yoel finally had time to look around him. His talk with Cole had definitely taken up more time than he thought it would.
The rest of the group had gone to sleep, it seems.
Well, except Cole who was keeping watch.
Yoel shivered, noticing the morning cold seep into his skin, he made a gloomy expression and laid down once again.
His wounds were not fully healed, yet. He couldn't waste time, not right now.
Eventually, he fell asleep surrounded by the uncomfortable embrace of the leaves of this killer jungle.
That night, he had a strange dream. A dream he was better off forgetting.
***
Yoel stood alone, amongst a barren grey wasteland. Not a soul in sight.
If there had been any colors here, then there was something wrong with Yoel. All he could see was different shades of grey, for many miles ahead.
Where was he? What was this place?
A sudden impulse pushed Yoel into a mad walk toward nothingness.
He didn't know what was happening or why he was heading where he was, but he felt an extreme desire to follow that path.
After walking for a little while, a black spot could be seen in the distance. As if a beacon of darkness, amidst the shades of grey.
Yoel shuddered.
This is a dream, isn't it?
A dream.. huh? Am I not supposed to wake up once I've realized it?
Isn't this a bit too realistic?
His pace quickened.
At this point in time, he was slowly jogging toward that pitch darkness in the distance.
The jog turned into a run, and then he found himself desperately trying to run even faster, trying to surpass his limits just to reach that darkness.
As he ran forward, the darkness got bigger and bigger.
Eventually, he could point out tendrils of vast darkness swinging about. It almost looked like some sort of outside source had invaded his dreams or something of the like.
Something like a virus.
He felt out of breath, he felt tired.
How much longer did he have to run? What was he trying to achieve here?
I need to get out of here.
Eventually, he slowed down. He still kept a walking pace, up until he reached the first tendril.
However, when he tried to touch it, it disappeared instantaneously, as if it was never there in the first place.
He felt his heart pulsing through his ribs unnaturally. It wasn't his.
Then, he realized something.
He looked down at himself, trying to make out what his body was like.
He.. didn't even have a heart, nor ribs for that matter.
All he could see however was a blurred static. His body was not tangible, but he still felt the ground, the pain in his legs.. the exhaustion..
What in the world was going on?
At that moment, he heard it.
A bell rang.
And then another.
Again.
And again.
..Again.
A myriad of bells of different proportions rung inside his mind.
His head was ringing from all directions.
And then, silence all at once.
He could still hear the ringing, in the distance within his brain, even if they had stopped.
While the bells were performing relentless assaults on his ears, he noticed the landscape finally change from the boring grey...
Rays of light invaded it from the grey clouds above, and at the same time... darkness incarnate had been manifesting into those tentacles he had seen before.
And that's when Yoel noticed it..
Vague figures from both points, figures that were so boundless, his mind was sent into disarray.
Figures that he wished to never see again.