43 Sunshine

Stanis paced through the tunnel, this specific one having a spiral structure as it went upwards. It would be a lie to say that his heart was blossoming hundreds of colourful flowers as he thought of finally leaving the Zelts' base. Rather, his face had a cold mask, his countenance dull: both of which relayed his inside emotions.

It was hard, a hurdle to overcome every single step. His resistance to pain had gone up massively, but that didn't mean the pain was gone, rather just that he could deal with more of it. If he could have cried, he would have. Despite the torturing being over, the memories alone sunk his heart, his mind forever a shell of what it used to be.

The darkness that surrounded him was the only company he had, his yellow-tinted skin now ghastly-white due to the lack of sunlight and the torture. His body was weary but he still walked.

"RRRRRRAAAAAAAGGGRRRRRRHHHHH"

A roar echoed through the tunnel, catching Stanis by surprise as his heart began beating faster. Rak had caught his scent.

"I WILLE TEARR YOOU APARRRT", every word was emphasised as the second shriek caught up to Stanis. In fact, he swore he could even hear a gnashing of teeth, similar to how the blades cried out when they scraped against each other.

This was like his first trial again, his body overflowing with fear as he abandoned his amble walk and broke out into a desperate run. He didn't want to see any of that species ever again. His pale arms were flailing about as his legs struggled, pushing through all the pain.

And yet, despite how fast he was going, he had no chance at all of outpacing Rak. Rak was an agility-based tier-two. The difference between a monster and tier-one monster was that a tier-one had simple skills and command over normal monsters. However, the differences between a tier-one and tier-two were just too many to state. But all in all, tier-twos were, on the whole, as smart as humans and just as powerful. Stanis hadn't invested many of his points into Dexterity and thus was destined to be slower than a human who had only focused on it. The same concept applied to Rak.

Soon enough, Stanis could hear the footsteps behind him. They started out as gentle as a light drizzle, but almost as if the skies themselves had burst, the light drizzle became as rapid as a torrent and as loud as thunder. Stanis could hear the raspy breaths behind him, the roaring so much louder, the growling of a real beast. But he could also the light at the end of the tunnel, this time the light not unnaturally bright but rather the gentle shine of dawn.

He pushed himself further as he saw the hint of hope, unwilling to let this chance fly away. But this only caused his chaser to grow further enraged, his predator becoming a truly bloodthirsty monster.

The last step: his feet but a metre away from the exit, the sun shining in all its glory just in front of him. But he also caught; the prey in the net. Rak had leapt a second back, his claws lacerating Stanis's ankles. Despite the rough pair of hands weighing him down, Stanis persisted onwards, using his hands as a leverage as he pushed himself out.

The sunshine on his skin made half his worries die, the fear of never escaping the tunnels now gone. But turning around to look at his bloody wound brought back another handful of worries, his eyes wide with fear as he looked at ferocious Zelt in front of him.

Rak opened his mouth wide, before lunging forwards, his eyes set deeply on Stanis's thighs. In fear and shock, Stanis kicked up with his maimed feet, the immediate danger gone as he struggled backwards into the sunlight. However, this was nothing but a fleeting sanctuary as Rak merely followed, once again lashing out.

His hand violently slapped against Stanis, the sensation immediately bringing up memories of the countless times he was whipped and flailed in his mind. Stanis was crying as he was pushed down, his body losing all strength to fight as Rak clawed him once more, this time the target his arm. The sharp claws scraped off his leathery skin, the image in his mind instantly that off the slicer dissecting his left arm.

Stanis began shrieking, his mind only all but gone as he uselessly struggled a bit more. The fear of death and pain, something he had embraced within his week of torture, were back to being the harrowing fears they once were, his mind desperately searching a path for life. He wouldn't live this fight: his mind knew this as the lessons were too deeply ingrained in his flesh but that didn't stop it trying as it searched for a way out.

His lips mouthed the words, the words that had once thrown him into the pits, but now the only words that could get him out. It was as addicting as a drug, the feeling euphoric, and his body once again a dirty slate as he relapsed.

"Layman's Rush"

Rak whole-heartedly laughed as he attacked, this time his leg flickering past Stanis's eyes as it kicked him into the rough ground. But he didn't cry nor scream anymore: he no longer feared death, he no longer feared the pain and most importantly, he no longer feared the race in front of him. His flesh no longer remembered, only his furious mind left behind.

Stanis's right arm shot out, holding Rak's leg which was just about to retreat. He pulled the Zelt onto the ground with previously impossible force, an ounce of fear birthing in Rak's heart as he watched the transformation. Just as Rak was diving into the ground, a left fist came out of nowhere, shooting his feet into the air as he now collapsed backwards. But Stanis wasn't done, this was his moment to enjoy, his moment to take out all the hatred that had been overshadowed by his fear. He leapt to the skies, his flailing foot kicking Rak in the groin, sending him higher into the sky.

Only three seconds left.

In one second, Rak came down, caught by a left arm before he hit the ground.

Within the next second, a right arm came forward menacingly slow. Rak was only half-conscious at this point, his mind out of it from the sudden bursts of pain. But even in his dazed state, his eyes still popped out as he noticed the intense mana fluctuations around Stanis's hand.

"Destructive mana recharge"

And in the last second, the arm placed down on Rak's face as the lips mouthed the words. Within milliseconds, Rak's life was drawn away, his head to neck instantly greying to the colour of ash. And then the head cracked, akin to how the crystal teleporter had shattered, skull fragments exploding out as bone grains filled the air, the smell rancid. There was no blood…

And as always, Stanis collapsed to the ground, his battle-high fully over. The after-effect had gotten better after he had buffed the skill, but during the previous times, he only had to go from a state of no pain and fatigue to a situation with a lot of pain and fatigue. This time, not only was the pain and fatigue incomparable to the previous times, there was also the added element of his broken mind, causing triple damage as it hit like a truck.

A few minutes passed and Stanis lay motionless on the ground, drool leaking out of his mouth. He was tired, tired of life. And yet a little voice inside of him told him to carry on, eternally fearful of the rest of the Zelts who would follow. So, he lightly healed his worst injuries and began trekking up the mountain, somehow hopeful that the summit would be devoid of danger. He didn't bother with Rak's storage stone, just as he hadn't bothered for the guard's.

Three full hours had passed as Stanis saw the peak in sight. His ankles had only been weakly healed and therefore had broken down half-way through, thus he had crawled the rest of the way. His right arm was now red, bruises abundant and cuts plentiful. His left arm was in a similar situation, although to a lesser extent. Stanis had given up hope an hour in but he had still kept going, a foolish drive to at least reach the top before collapsing. It was similar to how marathon runners carried on near the end, despite the intense pain and fatigue they had built up, simply on willpower.

The sun was now at the peak of its arc, shining cheerfully for some while raging down onto Stanis, the heat at an unbearable level as his back had already burnt red. But he was almost there: just a bit more and he would be at the top where he could finally rest. The question of what would be up there never occurred to him, his mind blindly pushing his body.

An hour later, he was finally there. His numb arms pushed him forwards one last time before he collapsed, his arms bleeding as he lay in the beating sun. There was nothing around him; the top of the mountain was not a spike but rather a large, flat field, one so barren that only the dry ground could be seen.

But there were footsteps from behind him, followed by voices ever so rich in mana.

"Ha-ha, I win. I told you he would make it all the way up here!"

"Humph! I should have just killed him before he made it"…

"Mmm. You always cheat like that…"

"…"

****

"Welcome Human," said a blue flame.

…

"Swear your allegiance to us right now, and be rewarded" it ended with, the tutorial space now silent as Gahlnym waited for an answer.

Franz was kneeling down, his head in a bow as he wondered whether that was the cue for him to speak or whether there was more.

Gahlnym guessed the Human felt conflicted about betraying his race, but only got one word in as Franz started talking alongside.

"I'm so sorry, Lord" said Franz, harshly berating himself as he realised he might have just ruined his chance.

"Carry on" responded Gahlnym, internally pleased with Franz's appropriate use of pronouns.

"I would be eternally honoured to serve you, master; you and your race will not be disappointed by my servitude."

A harrowing laugh followed.

"It is good to see that you know your place, Human. Remember that although we might be above you, you are also above every other Human from this day forward, after all you are part of us now"…