Mission Accomplished?
Liam had always been an adrenaline junkie. He craved thrills, danger, and adventure. He knew if he heard about the Tyrant's Mighty Tower when he was a kid, he'd want to be a part of it. Who wouldn't want to? Instead of boring life on Earth, a game-like world with countless species competing to climb the tower was thrilling. But now he realizes he had no idea what he was getting himself into.
Liam's heart raced as he climbed the mountain towards the Green Zone. Of course, he had witnessed the terror. Everyone did, particularly at this point. The Tower was a lawless environment in which anything could happen. And a lot of things happened. Countless players had already perished while attempting to reach the summit, their lifeless bodies scattered along the way.
But as Liam and his companions approached the peak, something made him freeze. It wasn't just the sight of the dead bodies, though there were enough of those to make anyone sick. No, it was something more. Something that made him shudder with fear.
'This boy...'
Aaron stepped forward, examining the bodies with a careful eye, and Liam didn't even notice. Liam was too preoccupied with the one body that stood out among the thousands. It was the body of a boy, no older than a teen, his eyes wide open in pain. Liam couldn't shake the feeling that he recognized him, that he had seen him before.
'He... He's Christian... the missing college student we're attempting to... save?' Liam had seen so many dead players, but he was unconcerned. He wasn't attached enough to care. However, the child in front of him was his client's son. He assured them that he will find the boy. And they were confident because Liam had never failed a mission since becoming the top International Detective on Earth. Never. But there was no time to dwell on it, not now.
"A81-69-8411-2-1. So... he's the first failure on our planet and batch, am I right, sir Liam?" Aaron asked, turning his head to face Liam.
The identification on the boy's body told them everything they needed to know. Liam carefully examined it, taking in the series of numbers and letters that would come to define his existence within the Tower.
He was aware that the codes in his ID were A81-69-8411-2-2, indicating that his species originated in Universe A, Galaxy 81, and Planet 69. And his recruitment batch was the 8411th since the Mighty Tower's beginning. Liam was also aware that the first number 2 in his ID represented his status as a draftee, an invitation failure.
If he had only passed the trial on Earth, it would be 1 instead of 2.
However, because he broke the rule, he would be classified as a second type of draftee, like Aaron, who would have to go through a pre-trial in order to be qualified to enter the Tyrant's Mighty Tower.
And the last number 2 in his ID was his personal number among the creatures who entered the Pre-trial from the same Universe, Galaxy, Planet, Batch, and Draftee type as him.
Therefore, there were at least two more people from Earth who failed the test or cheated like him and were sent to the pre-trial because he was only number two and it wasn't Aaron.
Because the ID on top of Aaron's health bar was A81-69-8411-2-4, making him the fourth draftee on Earth to fail to complete the cipher.
Liam, like the boy, had failed the trial on Earth, perhaps the latest in a long line of failures. How many were there? The only difference was that Liam had cheated, whereas the boy had done everything correctly until...
What was he doing in the Pre-Trial? According to Aaron's stories, the tests were difficult but manageable if the person was truly intelligent and talented. The final, on the other hand, was ridiculous and personal. What was Christian's ultimate challenge?
Liam gave Aaron a serious look, his eyes squinting. "What were the tasks of your final test?"
"The final test is to believe; they want me to believe that the glorious reward is real before I get it, so... it asked me to murder my parents to prove that I truly believe it," Aaron sighed. "I obviously couldn't do it, which is why I'm in the Pre-Trial," he explained.
"What?" was the only thing that came out of Liam's mouth.
"I figured... our forefathers went through these trials that you guys went through, and we studied it in history class, and their final test also included killing," Colleen explained. She sat beside Aaron and gently tapped his back in sympathy.
"We, Murkees, were only the third generation from the first draftees of Murkees here in the tower, unlike the Draconians who had been here for who knows how long. My grandfather didn't kill anyone to pass the final test in our original world, but he still paid a very high price to do so," Murkee explained. He had been curious about the other draftees' tests since he was a child. His parents used to tell him about the wonders of their world, where they were the top predators in a submerged world. But, ever since they arrived, they have faced only hardships at the hands of far more powerful species such as the Gargoyles.
Liam felt a pang of sadness for Christian, wishing he had been given the opportunity to prove himself in a different way on Earth, rather than in this absurd way. With the right guidance, he could have been more, something greater.
"You know him, right?" Aaron's voice cut through Liam's thoughts, jolting him back to reality.
"He's the reason I'm here, and he's my mission."
Liam took a step forward, not looking at the bodies that made him sick. He assumed that his mission was complete after meeting Christian. But there were still some questions he wanted to be answered in this Tyrant's Mighty Tower. And the Warden would be the one to respond to his inquiries.