Ren performed his final check before he left, surveying the damage.
The fire that had consumed the Warden of Roots and the surrounding clearing was dying down, with only the smoldering remains of the twisted roots and charred bark left behind.
Smoke was quickly filling the air and Ren waved his hands, clearing away the smoke in front of his face. He had indeed won, but at what cost?
The torch he had specially prepared for this grove was now lost. Well, not really lost as he could see the remains in front of him but it was gone. Forever.
The same flames he'd used to defeat the Warden had burned through the oil-soaked cloth and the stick, leaving nothing but ash in its place.
Now, he had to continue into the grove without light. Not just light but also the protection of the flame. While he was sure the grove only had one guardian, one could never be too careful.
With an exhale, he turned and continued deeper into the grove. The Divine Gift wasn't going to claim itself.
As he walked, following the path that was already there, he realized that the further he walked, the more the darkness receded.
The trees he passed weren't normal. While they did look normal, their leaves glowed faintly in the darkness. That wouldn't be a problem with a single leaf but when all the leaves on the trees glowed, the light covered everything in a very calm yet creepy way.
The deeper he walked down the path, the brighter the leaves got and the more light he could see by. It was both beautiful and unsettling.
Ren walked in the silence, feeling like the only one to exist in the world. It was like everything outside the grove was a figment of his imagination and only this path was real. But he knew better.
He kept his focus on putting one foot in front of the other until eventually, he reached the heart of the grove.
There, in the middle of the clearing, stood an enormous and ancient tree. Its bark shimmered with faint gold veins, its roots twisting like petrified snakes across the ground.
Sitting embedded in the trunk of the tree, was what he had come for.
A golden shard of glass-like material, pulsing with ethereal light which cascaded through the veins of the tree.
Unfettered Enhancement.
Ren knew, without a doubt, that this was the final trial.
He had been looking forward to and at the same time, dreading this moment. In the game, it had just been him pressing the sequence of buttons as fast as he could before the timer ran out but this was different.
He knew enough to know what was coming and the moment he took his first step toward the tree, the test would begin.
He exhaled, calming himself, and with a decisive nod, took the first step forward.
The world exploded and the feeling that came to him could not be easily explained with words.
It was not a wound, not something as simple as a physical injury. It was raw, excruciating agony that coursed through every nerve in his body like fire spiced with ice.
His legs trembled and his hands clenched into fists. His breath came in ragged gasps as his vision blurred. He wanted—no, he needed—to step back, to relieve himself of the pain. But he knew the rules of the trial. If he did, he would have to start over. And to make matters worse, each subsequent attempt would be even harder.
No, he told himself. Keep moving.
He gritted his teeth and took another step forward.
This time, the pain wasn't physical. It was deeper. It struck something far more ethereal.
It was as if something reached inside him and tore at everything that made him what he was.
He felt his memories unravel, his sense of self flickering like a candle in the wind. He groaned, his body shuddering, but all that was left in him was his great desire to step forward. So he did.
The third step brought something new.
The whisper slithered through his mind, a voice so insidious that it almost sounded like his own. He could feel shadows that felt like old friends taking shape at the edge of his vision.
You're not strong enough. You never were. They whispered.
Ren clenched his fists harder. "It doesn't matter." He growled through clenched teeth. "I don't need to be good enough. I just need to survive."
The voices grew louder. You will die here. No one will remember you. This world will forget you just like it forgot others before you.
Ren screamed back at them, pushing through.
Each step felt heavier than the last and while he wasn't sure how many more he could take, he refused to give up.
I don't care! He shouted in his mind. I won't die here!
Memories struck him like daggers. Memories of things that hadn't even happened yet.
He saw visions of his brothers flaying the skin off his body as he screamed. Memories of Lilith Underwood, the third Great Calamity, ripping his soul out of his body.
The visions, moments of betrayal, of loss, of helplessness, flashed before his eyes. People who had turned their backs on him. People who had abandoned him. The memories of a future that wasn't entirely his own tried to crush him into the dirt.
Still, he kept walking.
"I don't care." He whispered through gritted teeth.
The agony, the doubts, the memories, they didn't stop. But neither did he.
With every step forward, he screamed back at the trial. He refused to stop. Seconds felt like hours and the pain tried to break him, but he simply did not care.
He didn't even know when he took the eleventh step and everything fell away.
The voices shut off abruptly, the memories disappeared and the pain fell away like it had never been there.
Ren fell to his knees, gasping for breath. His body felt like nothing had changed, as if the trial he just took had never happened.
Yet he knew what he had endured. He had survived the test and had forced his way past everything that had been thrown at him.
At the realization, his eyes went wide and he looked up.
The Divine Gift pulsed softly with golden light as it slowly detached itself from the tree trunk. It floated toward him, hovering just inches from his face.
For a moment, he simply stared at it, drinking in the sight of the power that would soon be his.
Then, slowly, he reached out.