Wiping the blood from his face with the blue scarf, Talen sprinted at the Bird of Plague.
With each step he took, his face shifted in pain.
The pain gradually turning his steps to limps.
Clutching his side, Talen held back his blood from oozing.
Slowing his sprint, he observed the battle, a sigh escaping his lips.
Valen and Calistis's battle with the bird was much more hopeful than Talen's but, it was still the same.
However, upon closer, Talen noticed something.
He noticed the bird was not simply toying with the unfortunate candidates, It was fascinated by them, and by toying by them it learnt from them.
"The bird's to feisty for you." Talen shouted, approaching the battle.
Landing, Valen glanced at him, smile beaming. "The hero rises from the dead, truly heroic." He declared with a heartfelt laughter.
"Hero?" Talen whispered, confused.
"Have you awakened?" Calistis asked.
"Yes, and now its no longer so invincible." Talen replied, with a smirk. "I can sense Its attacks."
His best guess to how he was able to sense the Tempest's attacks was Nether. Nevertheless, it was less invincible now.
Pausing his limp, Talen crouched breathing heavily.
"He's got me good, i can't fight. I'll just instruct you." Talen announced, cold sweats dripping from his forehead.
"Why not." Valen roared back.
Calistis clicked her tongue, brows in a frown.
Even though she was not comfortable being a mere puppet, she didn't really have a choice.
"Time to dance." Talen roared.
He began honing in on the fragile disruption in the natural flow, he felt at every whistle.
Fweet
He heard it, and immediately he sensed a ripple in clearing's flow.
Focusing harder, Talen was able to visualise it.
"Jump big guy." Talen ordered.
Instantly Valen jumped, as he did a powerful gush of wind swept where he once stood.
Looking back at Talen, he smiled. "You are full of surprises." He chucked, voice overflowing with renewed hope.
"Focus." Talen replied, returning his focus to monitoring the Nether in the clearing.
His sense of it was very vague and the clearing was too vast, he knew it was only a matter of time until the bird learnt a new trick.
Talen had only created a fragile advantage for them.
An advantage they desperately needed to cling to, for as long as they could.
"The Zone should boost my sense." He whispered, taking in a deep breath.
As Talen exhaled, he slipped his consciousness into the Zone.
His iris and pupil blended into a swirling mist of radiating purple, the whites in his eyes turned faded into a lifeless shade of black.
Opening hours eyes, Talen noticed a change in his perception of Nether, It was clearer albeit by a tiny margin.
'Will do.' He thought, sighing.
Another whistle. Another ripple.
"Dodge left, princess." Talen commanded.
Following his command, Calistis swiftly dived left.
Similarly a powerful gush swept past where she once stood.
With a click of her tongue, she glanced at him mumbling. "These are mere basics of the th-."
She froze, unable to complete her ridicule.
Her gaze locked on Talen's radiating purple Zone eyes.
"Dual enhancer." She whispered, her words flowing in bewilderment.
It was a fact now, no longer a justified assumption. He existed, a dual enhancer.
Talen was something unique, special, new. And most importantly powerful, dangerous, and mysterious.
She gritted her teeth.
"Duck, princess." He ordered again.
She ducked.
Another powerful gush passed her, rustling her hair.
The Bird of Plague tilted its head, watching as its once hopeless toys dodge each of his insidious attacks.
Its murderous gaze traveled between the two observing them curiously as it continued to attack, nothing about them had changed.
It tilted its head again confused by the development, suddenly it heard something.
Following the sound, it shifted it's dark gaze onto the sitting puppeteer, it remembered him.
...
Inside the space plane, Garvin watched, his finger tapping nervously on his seat.
It was truly an impressive display of fluent teamwork and talent from Talen however, as remarkable as sensing Nether immediately after awakening was.
Talen was still a green horn going against an ancient and powerful Tempest.
Garvin understood it was only a fleeting moment of respite for the candidates, until the Bird of Plague adapted.
"I do not remembering the Admirals being so busy." He mumbled, in a sigh.
Suddenly his tapping finger froze, his hands gripped the seats handles.
"Already." He screamed.
The Tempest had adapted by veiling the Nether in its attacks.
Now each of its attacks landed with more force then ever, with every gush of its wind a candidate flew.
Garvin watched with a grim look on his face, his heart in a rush.
"That thing is dangerous." He commented, watching the candidates return to toys.
From out of nowhere, a dead hologram flickered to life.
Garvin glanced at it with a smile, his call had reached an Admiral.
He stood in a salute waiting for the reveal.
Slowly the hologram stabled displaying a familiar face.
"Salute Admiral Ashen." Garvin greeted.
"At ease." Ashen replied, tone flat.
Taking in a deep breath, he explained. "I called to request for an Admiral's permission to end the third trial."
Glancing around the room, Ashen observed all the holograms in silence.
Returning his gaze onto Garvin, he asked. "On what grounds."
Swallowing, Garvin explained further. "If i follow current procedure only one candidate will pass, Kestis Sol."
Pausing, he glanced at the bird. "And they are facing a Chaos Monster they were not meant to." He explained.
The Admiral remained silent for a while deliberating, his expression neutral.
"Very well." He finally spoke.
"I Admiral Ashen permit, you Vanguard Garvin. Permission to end the third trial however, the Tempest must not be slayed." Ashen announced.
Instantly, a smile beamed on Garvin's face. "Thank you sir." He thanked, trying to hide his smile.
Without a reply, Ashen ended the call leaving Garvin's reflection on the hologram.
"New staff." He celebrated, returning to his seat.
With a relieved sigh, he glanced back at the battle.
The Bird of Plague was still toying with the candidates, Talen could only sense a few of its attacks. It was grim, they were always moments away from death.
"Such Talented recruits shall not die on my watch." Garvin declared, with all most comical zeal.
Placing his hand on the handles, his fingers began dancing between buttons. Reverberating the ship to life.
...
Back in the clearing.
Talen sat, pouring his all and more, trying to sense the Tempest's attacks. However, with each attack the Nether he could sense became less and less.
His predictions turning into guesses.
"What is happening, hero." Valen asked, standing up.
Tears and dust mapped his battle suit however, his body remained unharmed.
Calistis on the other side, was the opposite.
Her battle suit was similarly torn and tattered, her hair disheveled and drenched in a mixture of blood and sweat, at every tear and tatter a bleeding graze lay.
She locked eyes with bird, breathing heavy.
'How.' Talen thought, unable to speak.
Even though his limit in the Zone had been eliminated by the ascend, his body had yet to registered that.
He sat drenched in his own blood, too ragged to control it.
His body screamed and begged for rest but, rest here and now meant death.
Another insidious whistle sounded.
Talen tried harder, pushing his body and mind to new limits. Still, there was no ripple.
The stick dropped, Talen opened his eyes.
Blood flowed from his eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and all his previous injuries.
He experienced a new phase of pain.
His brain felt like it was melting, his body like it was being torn piece by piece.
'This is new.' Talen thought, struggling to hold himself up.
The Bied stood frozen in silence, Its eyes darting, as it watched its three toys.
Calistis stood, barely. Covered in bruises even on her tail, blood flowing slowly from her lips.
"A Zyros fights till their death." She mumbled, eyes burning with cold resolve.
How ever resolve alone was not nearly enough to fell a foe, it needed to be wield.
Valen kneeled, clutching onto his Viking war hammer for support.
Slowly his iron body had incurred grazes, albiet minor. However, unlike the other two candidates he could still move, he could still fight.
"This is my chance to be the light, the Hero." He whispered, pulling on his weapon to stand.
As he was about to charge at the bird, he heard something.
Subtly, a familiar mechanical hum filled the clearing, following it where gentle winds.
Abusing his body further, Talen tried looking up for the source of the sound but, he could not. Nevertheless, he saw its shadow.
That was not the case for the other two though.
Looking up, the two candidates witnessed it.
Their transport to what had seemed to be their graves, hovered above them.
As the shaft slowly opened releasing compressed air with a hum.
Garvin flaoted out standing on a strip of metal, behind him, four of the same strip circled like a halo.
"Candidates, you have passed the third trial." He announced.
Glancing at the Bird of Plague, he gestured his hand.
Three of the four strips flew at a blinding speed at the bird.
The first covered it's whistle hole pinning its head down, it shirked. The second and third pinned its feathers down, it shrieked again.
Its restraints were unrelenting.
In a matter of seconds, Garvin had completely immobilised it.
They had struggled desperately against it, it toyed with them, without exerting its full power. So how could it be defeated so easily.
What Talen had witness was something he struggled greatly to comprehend.
With the immediate danger neutralised, Talen's mind and body instinctively shut down.
Glancing at the shrieking and struggling Tempest, Garvin groaned. 'I can not hold him down for longer.' He thought.
Glancing around at the surviving candidates, he smiled at the shock on their faces.
"There is much more to be seen, save your shock." He declared, commanding the strips of metal.
The last strip and the one pinning the bird's feathers swept through the clearing, transporting the candidates into the space plane.
Straining his neck, Talen glanced at Henry's corpse with a groan.
Watching his lifeless body lay in the blood pool, Talen smiled a forced smile. His eyes shinning in realisation.
'I know what i want to do. I want to grieve, mom and Henry, i want to be angry at myself, I want my emotions back.'
...
"Then you, Sol." Garvin sigh, as a strip carried Kestis away.
As Kestis flew past Garvin, cradled in his metal strip he glared at him.
'How dare he, how dare he touch me with these meager tricks.' Kestis thought, glaring at Garvin with eyes of contempt.
Surveying the scene of the battle, a crude smile crept onto his malnourished face. 'At the very least that incessant rat is dead.' He thought, cackling at Henry's corpse.
"You will be next, Talen" Kestis whispered.
Following the candidates, Garvin floated back to the space plane.
Standing Infront of it, he glanced back at th Tempest.
"Good bye for now." He waved, summoning back his last strip of metal.
As the restraint left the bird next, it rose flapping its enormous wings in fury.
It shrieked, and shrieked preparing to chase after it's stolen toys.
However, as it was about to lift Gavin's strip tore through its wing.
It cried, in pain.
...
As they flew through the canvas of the Physical Realm, Gavrin sat comfortably on his chair.
"Welcome to the dangerous world of the Physical Realm, staff." He muttered.