The world dissolved into a deafening roar. Sound came from everywhere at once, a chaotic symphony of howling wind that tossed Lucid's body like a ragdoll. He spun and turned helplessly, completely at the mercy of the violent current. He tried to see, but the wind blasted against his face, forcing him to squint. Through the slits of his eyes, he caught faint, blurred glimpses of shimmering lights. The sensation was terrifyingly familiar, a carbon copy of that Wednesday evening years ago, walking home from school when the world had first torn open and swallowed him. This was not new to him; this was the very phenomenon he had been trained to handle back on Earth.
'That is a story for another time, a story long gone,' he thought, forcing his mind to focus on the present.
Suddenly, the violent motion ceased. He regained a sense of balance just in time to land, falling safely and instinctively parting his arms and legs to dampen the impact. He was frightened, yes, but it was not the fear of the unknown. He knew exactly what awaited him on the other side. Rifts were unnatural phenomena, cracks in the fabric of space and time that led to worlds far too unforgiving, with hellish landscapes totally different from one another. This particular rift he had been sucked into was a sentrum rift, a specific and dangerous type, It is a rift that can appear anywhere, as long as someone is nearby. It never forms when no one is not around. What makes it different is that it always drags you into a trial. Depending on the trial, it can be impossible or something you can survive if you stay sharp. Those who make it through come out awakened as Enlightened. Those who fail die. Lucid failed his trial, yet somehow, against all odds, he lived.
"Lucid, are you alright!?" Alice's voice called out urgently inside his mind. She had followed him, of course. They shared the same body.
He ignored her desperate cries for a moment, his thoughts racing forward. Stars, like galactic cosmic shimmer, reflected in his vision. Then, a gradual, immense pressure began to build, as if the entire universe was closing in on him. Every noise, every one of his senses, became overloaded and overshadowed by this massive, pressing weight. Then, there was only darkness.
He landed with a soft thud on a grassy field, feeling momentarily dazed. A voice, monotone and completely indifferent, whispered gently beside his ear. It was not Alice's.
***
Welcome, Enlightened...
The trial shall commence.
Any failure in completing the target in due time will result in one's forfeit of life.
Objective: Conclude the event.
Participant: Alice The Divine Maiden.
Trial scenario: B.
Required time: 24 hours.
May your journey lead you towards Enlightenment.
***
He pushed himself up onto his knees and then stood up deliberately, taking a moment for his vision to adjust. A metallic scent filled the air, mixed with the smell of something burning. He looked around, scanning his surroundings left and right.
What met his eyes was an open field of purple grass under the same violet-bluish sky he had seen when he first arrived in this world. It was as if he had been sent back to that very forest. A chill ran down his spine at the thought.
His grim reflection was interrupted by a man's voice cutting through the silence.
"My brothers and sisters! We stand here united and unwavering! We have been banished, cast away like used dolls after being sucked dry of every penny!"
'What the...' Lucid thought, his attention snapping to a crowd of Demi-humans of all sizes. They carried makeshift weapons, raising them in the air as a lone human standing on a wooden box delivered a passionate speech.
"This empire wants nothing more than its own self-interest! They take the fruit of our labour as tax, our boys for their armies, our daughters for their pleasures! Stand with me! Today, we shall show Materna what it truly means to be one people! Those who want to fight, stand with me! Those who will not or cannot, you may stand back!" The man's voice was raw, running out of breath, but it held a passion Lucid had rarely seen in his life.
'He is making a speech to uplift their morale,' Alice added, sounding slightly inspired herself.
Lucid did not answer. He was deep in thought. To him, this was not a joke or a spectacle. It was a death game, something not to be taken lightly. The voice upon arrival confirmed his suspicions. First, he was not the actual participant; Alice was. Second, this was indeed a trial within a sentrum rift, the same kind of rift his comrades had entered to gain immense power and awaken as the Enlightened. Lucid had faced one before, and he had never been the same after. On top of that, he had received nothing from it, a painful memory that mirrored the betrayal he had endured.
'I understand, Lucid,' Alice's voice chimed in softly, as if she had been observing his thoughts. 'What is the penalty upon failure?'
"Death..." he whispered under his breath, the word tasting like ash.
In the distance, a rhythmic, thunderous sound began to grow. It was the march of an entire army, their footsteps and armor clanking in grim unison. War horns sounded, a mournful cry echoing across the field.
'They have come...' Alice said.
It did not take long for the army to reach them. A horse approached rapidly, and an armored man, clad from head to toe in steel, dismounted. He walked toward the group of rebels with a composure that was elegant and practiced, like a nobleman. He unrolled a scroll and read aloud, his voice carrying over the tense silence.
"The Empire of Materna recognizes your resistance and acknowledges it. However, this land belongs to the one and only Empress Crespcula."
"That is ridiculous!" the rebel leader shouted.
The armored man kept reading, cutting him off. "Surrender, and Her Empress will forgive your transgressions. If not, you will be met by her wrath. No one will be spared. Not even the children." He delivered the last line with a venomous tone.
The rebel leader took a step back, clearly wrestling with his decision. Lucid only stood there, listening attentively, piecing the trial together.
"I... I refuse!" the leader finally yelled.
"Very well," the armored guard said, his voice flat. He raised a hand over his head, and a yellow light manifested in his palm, shooting up into the sky like a signal flare.
With that, a single, faint command could be heard from the distance.
"ADVANCE!!!"
Lucid's heart sank. He had figured it out, at least partially. He looked up and saw thousands of arrows darkening the sky, descending upon them like deadly rain.
"Lucid, quick!" Alice's voice yelled urgently.
Lucid acted without thinking. He ran to the wooden box the rebel leader had stood on and broke it apart with a powerful kick. "Everyone! Shield yourselves with these!" he yelled, grabbing planks of wood and holding them over his head.
At the corner of his eye, he saw a little girl sitting on the ground, staring up at the sky in frozen terror. Ignoring his own safety, he ran to her, shielding her with his own body and the piece of wood.
The arrows descended. The air filled with blood-curdling screams and yelps of pain. Lucid grunted slightly and stood up, clutching his left thigh where an arrow had grazed him. Blood soaked through his worn trousers.
A faint, warm glow enveloped the wound, stemming the bleeding. Alice's work.
"Run, kid!" he yelled to the little girl, pointing toward a settlement in the distance.
He looked back to where the imperial messenger had been, but the man was gone. In his place, about a hundred meters away, an army of fifty to seventy soldiers advanced in perfect, terrifying formation.
In retrospect, there was no possible way the group of rebels could win. They were only twenty-five people, armed with makeshift weapons and wearing ragged clothes, facing a professional, well-equipped army. If it had been his old leader or any of his trained comrades, they might have turned the odds. But this was his first time facing a rift with the right tools, unlike before that was meant to be an execution this is his first real trial. Now, it was entirely up to him, and what he had learned. No, not just him. Him and Alice, together.
'Alice, I need you to enhance my perception,' he thought.
'No, you are facing an army. I would much rather enhance your strength,' she replied, her tone formal but layered with deep worry.
"Now!" he yelled aloud.
His pupils dilated, and his mind sharpened, taking in every detail. There were exactly seventy soldiers, formed into three platoons, led by a single commander. Their primary weapons were spears and shields. Feeling slightly uneasy, he rethought his plan. A head-on confrontation was meaningless. But there was a way to win, a way without casualties, a way where they did not have to kill anyone.
He turned and ran away from the advancing army.
A small, determined smile tugged at the edges of his mouth.
"Lucid... what are you doing..." Alice's voice was soft and passionate, as if she was constantly trying to understand him. "Remember that I am always on your side, and I will not deem you a coward for fleeing..."
The rebel leader noticed Lucid's sudden flight and pointed a shaking finger at him. "Look! This young man has forsaken his origin, his belief, his home... Do not end up like him!" he shouted over the chaos. "ADVANCE!!!"
For a moment, fueled by anger and desperation, the rebel group's morale surged, and they began their own desperate charge.