Pepe's tale faded into the present, leaving the four siblings in the oppressive darkness of the Dark Depths. "Old Man Marcus taught me everything I know. He's a legendary blacksmith who can make any weapon. He will have something for us to fight against the zombies," he alleged.
Stark, Matteo, and Hafen walked alongside the bottom of a cliff with him.
Hafen looked up at the foreboding cliff next to them. "So, this is where you go to get stronger all this time," he commented.
"What is this trial you mentioned? Will it make us as strong as you, Pepe," Stark inquired with a glimmer of hope.
Pepe stopped and turned to face them. "The trial is designed to expose your weaknesses and your fears. Only then can he begin to forge you into something new," he explained.
Matteo gulped and nervously fiddled with his shirt. "How much farther," he questioned.
Pepe held up a trembling hand to silence them. Then, he pointed to a faint light glowing from the cliff ahead. "There," he whispered.
A faint, warm light flickered in the distance.
Pepe pushed through a couple of thick bushes and into a small clearing.
In the face of a cliff, a cave entrance stood dark and imposing. Thick vines and moss clung to the rock around it. A faint, orange glow emanated from within, and the rhythmic clang of a hammer striking steel echoed from inside.
Stark, Hafen, and Matteo stared in awe.
Pepe took a deep breath and limped towards the entrance. "We're here," he announced. Moving the vines aside, he disappeared into the cave.
Hafen, Stark, and Matteo exchanged a nervous look and followed.
The inside was as Pepe had described.
In the center, Old Man Marcus worked at the forge. His white hair and wrinkles were more discernible than before. He wore a tattered blacksmith's apron over silk garments and safety goggles. With a firm grip, he held a glowing, red-hot piece of metal with a pair of tongs. He brought it down on the anvil with a deafening clang and continued hammering.
Sparks flew and illuminated his stern, focused face.
"Master," Pepe called out.
Old Man Marcus plunged the glowing metal into a trough of water, and it hissed. "You've brought your brothers," he grumbled. He looked up with a serious and knowing expression. "I've been expecting you," he muttered.
Pepe stepped forward and bowed. "Master, they need your training," he pleaded. "Zombies attacked the school. My brothers need to become stronger to help me protect the forest."
"Zombies," Old Man Marcus murmured with contempt. He placed the cooled metal on a rack and grabbed a rag. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and approached the kids. He inspected the blood on their clothes. "You must be Stark... Matteo... And Hafen," he assumed.
"We've never met before. How did you know," Hafen inquired with suspicion.
"Pepe told me about the three of you," Old Man Marcus revealed and gestured for them to sit.
Stark, Matteo, and Hafen sat on stools near the forge.
Stark stared at the weapons with intrigue.
A scythe, a great sword, a trident, a bow, and other unique weapons settled on the wall. They emitted an unseen energy.
Matteo looked at the shelves, and he inspected the jars holding glowing liquids and monster parts.
Hafen glanced at the forge and at the anvil. He took a mental note of the tools.
Old Man Marcus walked to a workbench and wiped his hands on a cloth. "It seems like the conflicts of the outside world have finally seeped into The Sacred Forest," he reiterated and paused. "We must stop them," he declared firmly.
Stark's eyes darted to him and narrowed. "What do you know about the outside world," he questioned.
Old Man Marcus turned to face them. "More than you can imagine," he answered. "I have fought many battles in my life and seen what men are capable of when they are consumed by power and greed."
Pepe stood beside him with a solemn expression.
"Their wars have inevitably come here as I had predicted," Old Man Marcus suspected, and a flicker of concern crossed his face. "I have been investigating the zombies for a week, but I didn't have any proof to link them to a mastermind," he elaborated and held up a small, glowing vial. "I extracted some venom from the zombies. My analysis shows it is not a natural disease. This is a weapon that was created as a new species of monster," he divulged.
"The Exalted One. Do you know of him," Stark asked.
"I do not know much. The Exalted One is a figure shrouded in mystery. People in the outside world fear him. Are you saying he's involved in the zombie outbreak," Old Man Marcus queried.
Hafen remarked, "He was at the school when the zombies attacked."
Old Man Marcus' expression darkened. "Well, I had believed there was someone else pulling the strings, but it may be The Exalted One. Someone who wants to unleash destruction upon the world," he pointed out.
Matteo trembled. "But why? Why would he want to do that," he surveyed.
"Power," Hafen guessed, and a dark premonition pressed over him.
Old Man Marcus took a deep, meaningful breath. "It's settled. You three will undergo my trial. If you all pass, you will become my apprentices," he declared.
Pepe walked to a wall and grasped a green lance. "It took me a whole year to pass. This became mine," he commented.
Matteo, Stark, and Hafen stared at him in shock. "A whole year," they gasped in unison.
"For now, rest until nightfall. Pepe, make them comfortable," Old Man Marcus ordered.
Pepe nodded and led them to a back room with a few cots. "Rest here. The trial will be tough, but I know you can do it," he encouraged with a smile.
"Well, I'm not sure how weapons will make us stronger, though. You always beat us with bare-handed strength. I expected a tough workout," Stark retorted, but he couldn't hide the excitement in his eyes.
Matteo, exhausted, already snored lightly on a cot.
Hafen laid down on another cot and placed his hands behind his head. He closed his eyes, and a million questions about Ms. Lily, the zombies, The Exalted One, and the outside world filled his mind.
A week has passed since the fire. A week since their world shattered. Now, they were in a blacksmith's mancave, about to undergo a mysterious trial. What kind of trial would last an entire year? What kind of reward would they receive if they succeed? How would they help them grow stronger? Will it be enough to stop the zombies?
Hafen's thoughts were immediately interrupted by a loud bang. He flinched and sat up.
Matteo jolted awake. "What's happening," he mumbled.
With a frown, Stark stood by a locked door and attempted to peer inside.
The knob jiggled violently from the other side.
A feminine voice shrieked from behind the door.
Pepe urgently held Stark back. "Don't open it! There's something wrong with her," he warned with a solemn expression
Hafen stood up, and his eyes widened in recognition of the voice. "Cassandra," he whispered in disbelief. He remembered the girl of the depths.
"What's wrong with her," Matteo questioned.
"It's too late. She's lost to us," Pepe declared with an angsty stutter.
Cassandra's shrieks continued, and she pleaded, "Let me out! I need to kill everyone!"
Pepe walked to the door and placed a hand on it. "Cassandra, calm down. You'll hurt yourself," he pleaded. There was a sorrow in his eyes.
"Kill! Kill! I'll kill you," Cassandra repeated, and her shrieks became more crazed and desperate.
Stark furrowed his brows. "She sounds like the zombies at the school," he noted and turned to Pepe. "Has she been bitten," he sought to know with concern.
Pepe shook his head and replied, "I don't think so."
From behind the door, the shrieking stopped.
Silence.
"For now, we can't let her free. She might harm herself or us. She's been in this state for a few days. I don't know why," Pepe explained with a frown.
"A few days," Matteo repeated with a hint of concern. He felt sorry for Cassandra.
Hafen looked at the locked door with a troubled expression. He thought of Ms. Lily and the other students who had turned.
Just then, the door to the main workshop creaked open.
Old Man Marcus stood in the doorway, and a grim look clouded his face. "It's almost nightfall. The trial will begin. Follow me," he announced and then gestured to the exit.
Pepe nodded and urged, "Come on, brothers. We shouldn't keep him waiting."
Matteo, Stark, and Hafen exchanged nervous glances and followed. They stepped out of the room and into another door. They walked up a staircase to the top of the cliff.
What awaited them at the top? What kind of trial did Old Man Marcus prepare for them?