Beyond the city walls, a massive carriage waited, three horses being fastened into its harness.
"So we really have to walk to each city?" Val groaned for the fifth time.
"Ugh, Val. I'm not repeating myself. We're walking." Petra scowled, her irritation plain.
I looked ahead, the sun spilling across the valley, and wondered if the atrocities ever came this close. Maybe we'd have a few hours of peace.
Simple, fine. Could be stronger: I clapped my hands, snapping everyone's attention to me.
"We will be taking turns on the carriage, leading the horses every couple of hours, and those who want to"
Val interrupted, not letting me finish.
"I'll do it."
"Okay, Val's up first."
In the trial, there were no communication devices or clocks. I had to rely on the sun and its position to tell time—the way I'd been taught.
I walked over to the carriage and took out a scroll that was sealed. Unsealing it, everyone stared at the map.
To the east, a city sat wrapped in rivers and forest, its walls swallowed by trees. Roads clawed through the wild, narrow and twisting, never safe from the branches overhead.
The northern city clung to the mountains, a fortress carved into the cliffs. Snow-capped peaks loomed above it, sharp and unwelcoming. The roads were nothing but jagged passes cut into stone. From where I stood, it looked untouchable—safe, but distant, as though it belonged more to the mountains than to any people.
Steph placed his finger on the map.
"Wow, that's pretty far away, not to mention the giant that we will probably have to fight. Look along the path after we cross next to the small island, there's a bridge where the Misfit is."
"Misfit?" I raised a brow
Steph continued, "Misfit is told to be a giant who wouldn't let anyone cross the bridge. Tales of knights who saw him say he's a jumbled mass of atrocities, fused into one nightmare."
Val was climbing onto the carriage where he would drive it.
"Can't we just go in some sort of raft?"
Steph sighed and continued. "We can't because we don't know what's in the water or what the giant will do if we try, plus, how will we move the carriage?"
Val laughed," Then we will have some fun killing the thing. We might even be able to restore some of D's memories because the team is back now."
With a quiet breath, I rolled the map back into its scroll. The parchment crinkled softly as I sealed it shut, tucking it away for later. Whatever paths we'd end up taking, I had a feeling this map would matter more than I wanted it to.
I handed it over to Steph and smiled. "Steph, you're a natural at this stuff. I want you to be in charge of navigation, ok, pal?"
"Thanks, Damien, won't let you down." His tone rose with gratitude
We all looked over to where we would be adventuring. I looked at everyone, admiring the view.
'I'll overcome these trials with Stella; there's no doubt in my mind.'
As we started to walk, I noticed multiple canals that led under the city, full of blood. I stood in front, leading the team next to where Val was riding the carriage. I had decided to find out the mysteries of this place, so I walked backwards to Steph.
"Hey, so what happened to this place? Where did the atrocities come from?"
Steph gazed into the sky where the sun was setting.
"That's just it, we don't. One day, the world shook, and word spread that each city was surrounded by these vile things—"
"Wait, so no one knows where they came from?" I interrupted.
"No," Steph said grimly. "The king called it war…
"Is your family alive or in one of the cities?"
"Here's something for you to remember. All of us, even you, were orphans. That's how we met. That's how we survived, that's how we grew."
Keeping my soft tone, I asked quietly.
"Ok, last question for now, are you related to Stella? You guys look the same."
"I mean, we were both abandoned by our families. She took care of me since I was a child, so I'd assume I have no idea. She never spoke about it."
I whispered, "Thanks."
I had a suspicion that the trial made a sibling for her. Who knows what else the trial has done to us and what it has implemented into our lives?
'Is the trial a living thing, a deity, or a spell created by someone? Who knows, but I want to find out one day.'
An hour had passed, and twilight had arrived. I had become aware of Stella staring at me, then looking away mad or something. Petra was speaking to Val while Steph was staring at the land, scouting for anyone or anything.
We had gotten to a river, the first I'd seen in a while. The river rushed into the woods, with traces of life along it, and I was even staring at a water monkey that skimmed across the water carrying a handful of berries.
Then an atrocity lashed out its tongue, skewering the monkey and yanking it into its mouth. Blood bled into the river as it swallowed the creature whole. After finishing its meal, it stared at us and froze, stood on two legs, and crushed its teeth against each other.
Val yelled Hurry, Petra before it calls the others out. Out of her back she drew a wooden bow without its string. Petra raised two fingers, sliding them upward. A blue line sparked into existence, forming a bowstring. Then, from nothing more, sparks came from her hand, creating arrows.
She drew the blue translucent arrow back and unleashed it. The arrow hummed with grace, then impaled the atrocity's throat, gushing blood spewing from its neck. From where we stood, it made no sound—no squeal, no roar—only silence as the arrow exploded through its throat.
In the next couple of seconds, the arrow flashed and exploded. Its body dropped onto the floor, and bits and pieces flew into the trees and landed back into the river flowing away.
'An archer! This team is very diverse, as it seems.
I smiled and held a thumbs up, "Nice shot, Petra!"
She smiled, "Thanks!"
I looked where Steph was mummering, almost in a panic.
"Hey, are you alright? Calm down, buddy. What happened?"
"Don't you get it?" he looked at me, worried.
Val spoke sharply and calmly, "They are running from something they shouldn't be this close to the city, something big."
"Which means that giant thing could be anywhere, we could get crushed in a matter of seconds!" Steph held on to his head, scratching it constantly.
I grabbed onto his hand and smiled.
"Calm down. We could be days apart from it. It's not like a giant atrocity can sneak up on us. We are still a month away from the bridge. Let's all keep moving and face what's in front of us, not what's to come!"
'Did I just sound like a leader for once? Maybe.'
Steph calmed down, "Alright."
Two Weeks passed, and we had gotten to the first mark on the map. It was one lone mountain surrounded by trees. In these past two weeks, I have gotten closer to everyone. However, Stella was still a little upset, so we only talked when we had to.
We had killed many atrocities, some came in herds, others came solo and ferocious. Something I learned is that Val wielded a giant golden Ki hammer that crushed his foes, and Steph wielded a Ki spear similar to Stella's but darker.
Today I wanted to confront Stella and ask why she was so upset.
'I don't know what I even did!"
It was Stella's turn to drive. Sometimes two people would get on at the same time to talk, but not for long. I glanced over to the carriage where Stella was eating bread and gazing into the path ahead that went around the giant mountain.
From the side, I hopped on and noticed she still didn't notice me. I stared at her and noticed her hair had grown, and even her face had become more attractive. I noticed a crumb on her cheek, so I picked it from her cheek and threw it onto the dirt path.
Usually, she would get flustered or fire back with some reaction, but this time her voice was flat, empty of anything else.
"What do you want?"
"Look, I'm sorry for whatever I did." I gazed where she had been gazing.
"I'm not mad," her voice still flat.
"Really? Then why won't you speak to me normally?" I crossed my arms and leaned my back against the wood."
"Listen, I'm not mad, so leave me alone. You haven't done anything," her tone sharp this time.
I shrugged.
"Ok, whatever you say. Do you see that giant bird to your right?"
As she looked over, I tickled her neck, as it was the only place where her skin had been exposed. At first, she giggled, then she turned and slapped me across my face.
My heart stopped for a moment and skipped a couple of beats. I was in complete surprise.
"Everyone, stop! I need to talk to him in private," her tone sharp and furious."
As we hopped off the carriage, everyone stood in silence; it had even felt as if the forest had shut down.
She pulled my hand where they couldn't see or hear us.
"Look, I didn't mean— I'm sorry if that was too much, Stella," I said softly, careful with my words.
"Stop. Just… stop. You want to act like we're close when we aren't. You're only doing it because of the trial, because we can't trust anyone else. I know we have to wear masks."
Her shoulders sagged, and she wouldn't meet my eyes, her voice softer now. "But right now… I want something genuine. Not fake. Not masked, Damien. So please… stop acting like you care."
I wasn't shocked or sad at what she said, but there's one thing I had to do. As she turned her back, I hugged her, pressing my armor against hers.
Damien sto-
I cut her off.
"I do care, Stella. You think I'm wearing some mask, but I'm not. I like you—you're my friend. I'd do anything to keep you safe. When your curse made you sickly, I felt something new—like I was losing something I couldn't live without. That's why I'm still here. That's why I haven't given up—because you're by my side."
Her voice became weak, and her tone became soft." What if I want to be something more than a friend?"
"I held her shoulders, making our eyes meet. Look, I can't give you that answer now. We need to get past this trial, and I need to consider this over in the real world. Just please be normal with me, the months I was in where atrocites were all I could think about were you."
She pressed herself against my armor, hugging me this time—soft, almost too comfortable, as if she'd been holding it in for far too long. I felt the weight of her against me, steady and real. Then I caught the faintest murmur against my chest.
"What was that?" I asked quietly.
"Nothing," she said, her voice muffled, "just… know I'm sorry too."
She pressed against me, then finally pulled away. Her cheeks were red, but her eyes—her eyes looked lighter than they had in weeks.
"I l-"
Before I could say anything, Val's voice rang out from the carriage.
"Oi! You two done with your little heart-to-heart, or do you want us to leave you lovebirds here?"
Stella flinched, glaring toward the carriage. "Shut up, Val!"
But as she marched ahead, her steps weren't quite as heavy, and for the first time in a long while, I felt the weight in my chest ease.