Stage 1: begin

Breathing heavily, barely able to stand, surrounded by walls of ice and earth Squad Ormr stood victorious. But none came out unscathed,… but all came out alive.

Tom had a cut across her back when a flame hounds claws broke through her armor. Chris had chunks missing from his chest piece because of the titan-para.

Ayden had bloody bite wounds across his legs from getting caught unaware when trying to save one of the earth users, as well as holding another sword shattered from use, though this time the flame hounds were the cause.

One of the defenders had a arm bound in a sling after it was shattered when he was tossed back hard and the other one was bleeding from his scalp.

The only one that didn't look to have any injuries was Wayne, who was only covered in a layer of dirt and sweat mixed together.

As the dust settled back to the ground the mentors of Squad Ormr could be seen fully, the same glow that they used to mourn the fallen set ablaze like the morning sun once again.

Smiles could be seen shining across each ones face, the joy of watching this new generation thrive in a world of pain and death. The feeling of acceptance washing over all the recruits, even Wayne felt it was earned that day; not deserved.

With the wave of a few of the mentors hands the walls were quickly removed and the recruits surrounded on all sides, the energy given off by those who sought to train the recruits increased as the temperature began to rise in the small circle.

- "You have earned the right to be called divers today, with this mission complete we baptize you in the name of those we chose to worship in honor of those you have chosen to worship. For alone we are each strong, but together we are stronger."

With that the light became to bright forcing everyone to close their eyes, but as they did a force was felt as their wounds began to heal and a portion of their fatigue was removed. Then as quickly as it was felt it was gone!

[You have been touched by the power of the wondering spirits, {Lycan Heightened Senses(entry lvl)} has evolved into {Lycan Heightened Senses(beginner lvl)}

You have been touched by the power wielded by the Gods of this land, {Lycan Heightened Senses(beginner)} has evolved into {Lycan Heightened Senses(intermediate lvl)}

*.*.*.* WARNING *.*.*.*

A spirit has placed its sight on you]

The feeling of accomplishment was soon over shadowed by one of confusion, as many believed in the Gods but were spirits and why was it watching Ayden.

All question could wait for another day though as looking around Ayden noticed that the others also glowed unlike himself, and they all found it strange that he stood under no God; but Ayden just smiled because he knew no gods chains would ever bind him.

*****

After Squad Ormr returned to the guild they saw Gene comforting someone the looked very similar to Ghadir in one of the conference rooms, his father most likely they thought as Gene stood and closed the door.

The joy of passing his first real task on the plains of hell now sour on his tongue as he remembered they had lost one of their own, and could do nothing to stop it. But life continues to move forward and the day was not over even though the sun was setting.

- "Ormr! Last task for the night before you can call it a night and you're not going to like it.

When we lose someone people are saddened more than you know at this moment, and because we lost someone that means you aren't trained well enough so we train harder today than previously. So before you leave you will do 100 laps around this field… or don't come back to tomorrow."

Pushing a set of doors to the side a large training arena could be seen with a track in the middle.

- "All abilities are allowed,… now go!"

And so they did so in various manners, incorporating each person own blessing type.

Wayne was the first one done flying around the track with in the first few minutes and then leaving. Tom using her ice, Chris using the poles around the arena in pair with his wires, the defenders riding on moving earth.

The only one not using an ability was Ayden who ran around the track, but the pace was even higher than the pace they had set out on the plains. The more shocking part was that the others had taken off their armor so they could move faster but Ayden had kept his full gear on, including his shattered sword.

'How can i take it easy when those around me did not make it home today?'

*****

A few didn't show up the following day, some by choice while others were mourned. But the world does not stop for the death of a god why would it for mere mortals, so the recruits trained for many weeks, sometimes taking missions out onto the plains of hell, but nothing felt as bad as the first excursion and it wouldn't for as long as they were recruits.

** 4 months after Titan-para **

Ayden had worked hard since the day his squad defeated the Titan-para. To become strong you must break your limits and with the grilling pace set by Tah'ler they improved faster than any other squad, it always put them all in difficult situation but was never to much.

As Ayden battled the beast, collected beast crystals, and trained one-on-one with Tah'ler his level improved, and he noticed with each level he gained the harder he was able to push his limits.

The Ayden today looked completely different than the man he was four months back as he approached level ten. He now had ether armor which gave off a slight glow, and was forged in a way that incorporated each beasts unique attribute.

His shattered sword was replaced with a longer thinner curved sword and dagger (no longer than his forearm) 10x stronger than his old blades, which had the ability to produce extreme heat that turned the blade a menacing crimson. His shield had been replaced and had a recall effect Incase he ever lost it or choose to do things like a vintage comic book hero who was idealized so much that to this day he can be seen, millennia later. His scale armor had been modded to allow full range of motion.

Yet his pride and joy were his new armored boots made from the Bush panthers crystal. Not only were they stylish in their black and purple dye but also had strength and a passive speed boost. Then to top the cake it had tiny spikes placed in parts of the boot that concentrated the power of his kicks, increasing his power by a large margin compared to months ago.

Which made the collective improvement perfect for today, because it was promotion day in order to become fully approved divers! All they had to do was pass the promotion test in the holo-deck.

Ayden wore a smile on excitement as everything he had been working for was all going to come together at the same time.

[STATUS SCREEN]

[•User•/Inventory/Quest/Shop]

> NAME: Ayden Blackwater

>CLASS: N/A

ABILITY: N/A

>RACE: Human ( beast man variant)

>FAMILY: UNKNOWN

>STATS:

-level: 9

* exp (19,000/20,000)

-strength: 13

-defense: 15

-agility: 16

-stamina: 18

-charm: 5

-available stat points: 0

>SKILLS:

-{shield recall}

-{crimson blade}

>BLOODLINE ABILITIES:

-{Battle Cry (beginner)}

-{Eyes of Knowledge (beginner)}

- {Lycan Heightened Senses (intermediate)}

-{Pack Link(beginner)}

-{Pack Mind(entry)}

[{Lycan Aura} has been unlocked; stage 2 evolution now available at lvl 10; stage 2 bloodline abilities will become available once evolution is complete]

"Ayden Black, you're next in the holo-deck. There are 5 levels in the recruit test but keep pushing till you can go anymore, it will help the system defending your rank."

With those words Ayden stepped into the holo-deck ready for all it could throw at him, but the system had one last thing to say before he began.

[The spirit watches you, prove you are worthy.

New quest available: pass exam, reward 1000 exp; spirit contract possible]

* Stage R1 begin!

************************************************

If i can get to 50 collections I'll start releasing an extra chapter each week if it stays at or above 50

if i get 25 stones I'll release an extra chapter the following week as well.

Also starting a discord for Gods myths and Lore i use in my story! Comment and let me know what you think!

https://discord.gg/qtKZqgNY