Hours blurred into a tense rhythm. Beasts clashed with candidates. Some fell — withdrawing through glowing sigils as the Tower pulled them out. Others endured.
Selene subdued a lesser guardian by aligning her resonance to disrupt its core, binding it in threads of light.Raven, bloodied but laughing, forced the Stoneback Ursal into retreat through sheer ferocity.Lyra lured a secondary beast into a trap woven entirely of illusions.Taren roared against the storm, locking the Gale Serpent in a war of force.And Nox — eyes sharp, movements precise — slowly began to resonate with the Spectral Stag, meeting it as an equal rather than master or quarry.
As the sixth hour approached, a deep voice rolled across the storm:
"Survivors: Recorded. Resonance links: Measured. Guardian reactions: Acknowledged. Floor Three — trial complete."
A golden surge of energy wrapped around the remaining candidates, lifting them, exhausted, toward the central clearing. Above them, far beyond the trees and lightning, the ranking board in Valdareth's plaza — the omnipresent obsidian ledger of the Tower — flared and recompiled itself in live-feed. Names, numbers, and brief annotations streamed across the public screen for every noble balcony, instructor gallery, and tavern viewer to see.
The Top Ten after Floor Three glowed into being:
[1] Nox Vale — 293.7 Survivor IndexExceptional resonance harmony with the Spectral Stag; high taming/adaptability bonus.
[2] Selene Aurelion — 287.4 Survivor IndexPrecise core disruption and guardian binding; minimal energy expenditure.
[3] Lyra Fen — 281.1 Survivor IndexStrategic diversion and survival efficiency; high ally-preservation score.
[4] Kaelis Norrin — 275.6 Survivor IndexSteady, methodical control; effective at neutralizing secondary guardians.
[5] Taren Voss — 269.8 Survivor IndexDominant combat performance; high damage, moderate efficiency loss.
[6] Raven Drayke — 264.3 Survivor IndexRaw dominance and endurance; high attrition cost but undeniable impact.
[7] Eira Solcrest — 258.0 Survivor IndexBalanced mitigation of hazards; high environmental read score.
[8] Finn Ashvale — 252.5 Survivor IndexUnexpected resilience and resourcefulness under pressure.
[9] Liora Cendris — 248.9 Survivor IndexElemental adaptation and steady consistency.
[10] Draven Marric — 244.2 Survivor IndexExplosive engagements, inconsistent but lethal when effective.
The plaza outside erupted again. Noble balconies whispered into lace fans and jeweled whispers: "Vale at the top after the wild floor? Curious — perhaps the forest blood remembers what the Tower asks." House retainers in Aurelion white exchanged glances — second place was expected; first place was not.
Astralis instructors, perched in their observation gallery, watched the board with guarded expressions. One lowered his quill and murmured, "Nox's compatibility with an ancient guardian is unusual. That's not just taming — it's kinship. Note this." Another, eyes narrowed, added, "High-ranking contestants showing endurance and low attrition will be the ones the Dominion courts."
In the shadowed alleys where mercenaries and rogue cultivators clustered, reactions took a harsher tone. "Vale's either the real thing or a target," a low-voiced man said. "Nobles will buy him or break him." A woman with a scarred jaw grinned. "Either way, there'll be coin in it."
Back on the ground, the exhausted candidates gathered near the clearing. The Spectral Stag's fading resonance still hummed faintly around Nox's fingers — an afterglow that marked him more than a wound. He looked up at the sky, where the Tower's portals now glimmered with new light.
Raven tossed a sodden tuft of fur from his shoulder and grinned despite the bruises. "We made it. That was… fun in a broken way."
Selene's smile was small and tired. "The Tower measures more than power. It measures choice. We were tested on endurance, not spectacle."
Lyra drew a thin breath. "And on whether we can think while bleeding."
The Tower's voice rippled once more through the storm and the trees:
"Ascension permitted. Those who wish to continue, step forward."
A faint inscription glowed near the clearing — the same offer they'd seen at every portal: withdrawal permitted; advancement irrevocable.
Several lower-ranked survivors stepped aside. Some had earned what they wanted. Some bowed their heads and accepted the record the Tower would keep of them this year. But among the Top Ten, hesitation was nonexistent.
Nox glanced at the list of names printed faintly on the field before them, then toward the portal — a sphere of light suspended above a ring of petrified roots. He felt the warmth of the stag's echo slipping into the marrow of his hands. For a long moment he said nothing, then stepped forward.
Raven was instantly at his heels, grin wide and dangerous. Selene, measured and steady, followed. Lyra drifted through the light like a shadow returning home. Taren charged with the same reckless cadence he used against the Gale Serpent. Kaelis, Eira, Finn, Liora, and Draven all crossed into the portal in turn — each lit by the Tower's approval, each carrying the marks of the Wild Trial.
The light closed behind them with a sound like a sigh.
Above the canopy, lightning ground to a hush. The Tower watched, ancient and patient. The ranking board in the plaza dimmed, keeping its new top ten for historians and schemers alike. The trials would continue — and with every floor the candidates climbed, the stakes and the echoes of history would only grow louder.
Nox felt the last warmth of the Spectral Stag under his skin as the portal swallowed him. He did not know what lay beyond — only that the Tower demanded more than survival now. It demanded something that could not be measured in scores alone.
He stepped forward.