"No one moves until I say so," on cue, they found themselves incapable of movement.
" All the challengers have been split into groups of one hundred. I am the supervisor for your group. Once you enter the cave you must survive seven days in the stage against the nightly onslaught of rotten human-like creatures who thirst for living flesh. There are a thousand of these adversaries that you must overcome."
The creature gave a brief pause and then resumed its monologue.
" I believe you know them as zombies. You are unable to kill any of your teammates and teamwork is advised. You'll find that meaningful achievements will take you a long way even as you progress. You have sixty seconds before the trial begins. Additionally, you are required to enter the opening within the final ten seconds. Take note, before the final ten seconds you will be incapable of movement. Silence is no longer required. Good fortune, challengers."
The inhuman mouth-less supervisor vanished and an unassuming timer resembling that which was etched upon Alex's arm back on Earth loomed at the top right corner of their visions. It occupied hardly any space, but its figures were distinct.
" Mon- monsters?! I'm done. I'm done." A sob followed hysterical laughter as a soft voice was the first to speak.
" Hey, blonde dude in front of me, we can team up. You look pretty muscular and I am a karate black belt. My name is Katherine and I have red hair."
Many people decided to try their hands at forging alliances, though they could only describe their appearances by speech as even their vision was unmoving. The next ten seconds were chaos. A few wallowed in their misery while others pleaded for quick bonds in hopes of surviving.
35 seconds left and Alex felt like the entire situation was looking bleak for them, herself not included. Groups of two or three would hardly survive against a thousand zombies especially when no one had much information. This bothered Alex greatly.
Just then, a ray of light emerged, a shepherd ready to lead ignorant sheep began his authoritative declaration.
"Hey!!" An Australian accent, Alex surmised.
30 seconds left.
His strained voice cut across the entire platform.
" We all need to work together!" Everyone had decided to listen to his words. They had realized they could not do much without even sighting whoever they wanted to team up with.
28 seconds left.
" Do you genuinely believe a tiny group can face hundreds of zombies?!" His words were now slow and measured, prompting his authenticity to subtly rise in the minds of his listeners.
24 seconds left.
" For seven days? While also securing food, water, and shelter. That is certain death. Do you want to ignore the advice of those who brought us here in the first place? Fine, be my guest. But, the more people in a group, the higher the chances of success. I propose we all stay together and win together."
12 seconds left.
" I'm John. Blonde hair 6'2 American. I'll ensure our survival."
With that, the anticipated time arrived. Their restrictions were released, permitting the frantic dash of the once-immobile challengers.
Luckily, each path was wide enough for eight people to walk abreast. Additionally, the path was not long. Many did not seem to consider this as they swarmed to the waterfall's opening.
Alex remained calm, analyzing the peculiar phenomenon that followed any entrance into the opening. She believed no one was passing the entrance, instead. anyone engulfed by the pitch black beneath the waterfall burst into extremely faint shimmering particles. Not only that, there seemed to be a force at the edge of the path and circular platform prohibiting them from falling into the otherworldly water.
There remained only three seconds, Alex had strolled to the beginning of the path. Only a few were running ahead of her, and behind her, three people were on the platform not bothering to move. A tight veil of gloom hid their features, signifying their unwillingness to go further.
Following each macabre segment of pain, Alex felt her body had undergone a minor reformation, but the final explosion of anguish within her after reading the last page was certainly the most profound. Every thought processed quicker, her mind clearer, her already outstanding physical prowess enhanced, and her soul. A lingering connection to the enigmatic grimoire seemed to have improved her soul in a way she did not comprehend yet.
All these thoughts took less than a second. The brown-haired female found those who were ahead of her had reached their destination bursting into enchanting motes of light.
Swiftly, she poised herself for running. It took less than a second for her to reach the waterfall. As her whole world darkened, she noticed a second remained on the timer.
Hapless, and resigned a male and two females could only watch as the others departed. The three did not know each other but found solace knowing they would not die alone.
Likely due to his twin sister's death, Toran concluded a gruesome fate awaited them all. He was eager to reunite with her rather than toil needlessly. In the last three seconds, Toran watched a medium-height female who seemed to be hesitating at the start of the path. Toran knew it was too late for her. She could not reach the opening in three seconds. He inwardly sneered, it was obvious they were marching to a malevolent end at the hands of who had given them a faint glimmer of hope.
He took one last glance at the girl, surprised, as she whizzed to the entrance. He had only caught a faint glimpse of her. Instantly, he recalled how the demon declared this a fair game, and he felt overwhelming relief that he would no longer be involved with such monsters donning human flesh.
The 01 on the timer flashed and burst into golden balls of light before entering the three failed challengers. They wordlessly melted into a puddle of solely flowing blood reaching the end of the platform and seamlessly integrating with the mesmerizing water body below.