Death and Survival

At the exit gate, which sat at the northern part of the base, stood roughly 200 participants who had made it this far in the exam. Indeed an alarming failure rate of 100,000 participants initially. Only these few remained, with less than a 0.2% pass rate out of 100,000.

No wonder why the school did not limit how many could enter Gate University. Even if a million people took the exam, only 2000 would pass.

As Aston, Fang Han, and the noble arrived at the exit, they saw that everyone there had been handed weapons. Garrick was there with some other soldiers standing by some empty boxes.

"These are just regular Iron weapons and Bows. They will protect you against small to midsize creatures. Anything larger than that, you should run away. Also, keep in mind special circumstances. Some creatures have natural body armor in the form of muscle, fat, or keratin plating." Garrick said as he looked off into the distance.

The participants did not have a great selection to choose from. It was either to get an iron sword, dagger, or bow and one quiver of arrows. This would allow them to have some level of self-protection.

"Now, before I open this gate, let me explain how this final test works again" Garrick paused as he looked around. The applicants were tense, and many were scared. "Your goal is to survive for 4 days until Monday morning. It is currently Tuesday afternoon." Garrick said as he looked at his holowatch.

"Out there are all manners of horrid, unimaginable things. But don't let that fool you. Many things seem harmless but would kill you in a second. A simple flower could give off a deadly poison in its pollen. A berry could be the deadly nightshade. A bird could be poisonous because of what it eats." Garrick warned them of a few things that most would die from.

The gate slowly opened with a loud mechanical whirr. The soldiers escorted them out of the training base before heading back inside. With a loud clank, the gate shut. The survival test had begun.

Aston walked over to Kayla and quickly took off running in a northeastern direction. Many participants got into groups and left together, while some went solo. After a while, only one person was left at the gate, and it was the weird boy. He had stood and watched which way everyone had taken off.

Then he turned his head northeast and took off with a wide grin on his face. If you looked closely, his eyes looked almost like a serpent's for a second before looking normal again.

As Aston and Kayla ran, they took in their surroundings, trying to decide where to go. In the distance, many roars and animal calls could be heard. The sun was setting, and it would be dark soon.

"We should look for a cave or tree to hide and sleep in. We must get off the ground where most things will be or away from the forest." Aston said as he looked around for an ideal area.

"That is a good idea, but the trees here are not tall enough, and plenty of creatures could climb these trees before we could wake up in time." Kayla paused and thought, "Aston stand at the base of this tree and give me a boost up to that branch." Kayla pointed towards a tree ahead of them.

"I am going to climb this tree and look at our surroundings so we can get an idea of where to go." Kayla climbed the tree while Aston pulled out his sword and stood guard.

At the top of the tree, Kayla looked at their surroundings. Around them were trees for miles, and the closest landmark was some mountains far in the distance. About 10 miles to the east was a giant forest with humongous trees. Far to the south was the ocean. Far north, it became a mountainous region. To the west was a swamp area.

Kayla shouted down towards Aston, "Aston, our best bet is to head further east. In that direction is a giant forest where we could take refuge in the trees. Any other direction doesn't look promising!" After climbing down the tree, Kayla drew on the ground and gave Aston an idea of the landscape around them.

"I hoped to find a cave to stay in, but that might have to wait until tomorrow. Right now, we don't have much time until nightfall. So let's head east to the giant forest." Aston then left with Kayla towards the giant forest.

Many had the same idea as Kayla did and had climbed trees to get a better look at the environment, but some did not think to do so. A good portion of the participants headed east. Some went south, and a few even went west. None chose to go north because the mountains were too far away.

In the west, some participants had found themselves in a swamp-like environment. These were the unlucky few who did not survey their surroundings beforehand. Now they could only pray they could survive the night.

Among these people who were in the swamp was the girl in the red shirt. She was not well dressed for the environment and stood out like a sore thumb. Her name was Alice Green, and she had ended up alone.

It was not that she did not want to have help, but her aggressive posture and sharp gaze scared off many who thought to ask her to join their group. She had gotten almost 2-Stars on every test except the first and was considered among the stronger participants.

However, she couldn't help it. She had grown up with four brothers and no sisters, so she was very masculine in her behavior and was very straightforward compared to most girls. So many would find her to be brash and unapproachable.

Alice sighed. "Looks like I picked a bad direction. I ended up in a swamp. My brothers always told me I needed to be more feminine and smile more; otherwise, no one would want to talk to me. Why should I pretend to be something I am not just to make a friend. If they can't accept me for who I am, I would rather have no friends."

However, at this moment, she felt that maybe she should have been friendlier toward the other participants. As strong as she believed in herself, she knew surviving alone would be difficult.

As she contemplated whether to risk running back towards the base and picking a different direction, she heard screaming in the distance. Seeing as she could use help, she immediately ran toward the screams to see if she could help.

In a different part of the swamp was a group of about 10 people. These people are people who have barely made it this far. They had just passed most tests and maybe got 1-Star on one test. So these few were less desirable to other groups, so they got together as a group.

This was the fate of the mediocre. To achieve great things, they had to do their best in hopes of changing their lives. Whereas the more talented can easily pass what they struggled to do. However, these brave few understood their weakness and still faced the challenges that they faced. Who, in the end, would achieve more is not certain. They might surpass the geniuses who mocked them if they survive and enter another world.

However, right now, that group of people has dwindled to about 5 people. Around them were the corpses of their allies, and in front of them was a Giant Titanboa. When they arrived in the swamp, one of them had gone towards the murky water to check if it was drinkable. However, they did not notice a snake in the water, a Titanoboa.

The Titanboa was about 40 feet long and 8 feet wide. It had blended perfectly in the murky waters due to its brownish scales and dark eyes. The snake struck the moment he got close to the water. It had bit into his chest with its sharp fangs and, with a quick swing of its tail, grabbed another person and constricted them to death with its tail. Within 10 seconds, it killed 2 people and ate them. However, it was still hungry for more and eyed the group with greed.

The group was caught off guard. It had struck so quickly they didn't have time to react. Some began to run in panic, but in the distance, they were pounced upon by many swamp creatures. One girl was even snapped up by a long tongue of a giant frog called a Beelzebufo. A frog the size of a car. It slowly hopped away with her in its mouth. Those who didn't run tried to fight off the Titanoboa.

However, the Titanoboa's strength and size would make it extremely difficult for them to fight it, and those caught tried to break free from its grasp. However, the snake would continue to constrict its prey, slowly suffocating them as they struggled to escape.

As the attack unfolded, the other group members were in shock and fear, unsure how to help their companions. Some tried to fight off the snake, while others might have tried to flee, but Titanoboa's speed and agility would make it difficult to evade.

However, Alice arrived as the group was about to be wiped out. She wasn't going to help at first, but seeing as there were still five people left, so long as they worked together, they had a chance, and if she could save them, they could help her survive the rest of the test.

So she decided to help them and sprung into action to help them. She told them to spread out in a circle around the snake. Even with its large size, the snake would be forced to look around at them when it decided to attack, giving them a chance to land a successful attack on the Titanoboa.

"The snake is way bigger than we are and far stronger. We need to work together to bring it down. Our best chance to kill it is to attack its neck or eyes, as those are its most vulnerable spots. Other areas would be pointless as its scales are incredibly tough and thick. Are attacks would most likely not pierce through." Alice said as they circled around the snake.

"The moment it goes for you to run, I can't promise it won't catch you, but if we don't do this, none of you will make it. It can easily catch us if we run away. So we must fight!" Alice yelled.

The others gathered their courage and began to pace around the snake in a circle. This forced the snake to constantly shift its sight from person to person, making it much more challenging to strike. Snakes, regardless of size, were better at attacking still prey. Moving prey was much more challenging to attack since they attacked in a straight line.

However, after about 30 seconds, the snake finally lunged toward a boy to its left. He knew he was supposed to run but froze when he saw that large gaping mouth coming towards him with its sharp fangs dripping with saliva. As the snake was about the snap its mouth around the boy. Alice lunged forward and leaped up in the air.

Alice had actually been waiting for a moment like this. As cruel as it was, this was the best chance to kill the Titanoboa. The moment it went to attack someone was the best chance. Due to it being focused on the prey before it, the snake failed to notice Alice's movement before it was too late.

Alice landed on its neck and quickly climbed up. As she climbed up, she shouted at the others. "Now is our chance. While its mouth is full, grab onto its neck to keep it from throwing me off." The other 4 people instantly ran forward and jumped onto the snake to hold it down. The snake tried to swing Alice off, but with the people holding down its neck and food in its mouth, it struggled to throw her off.

The Titanoboa must have been starving because despite all that was happening, it refused to let go of the boy in its mouth. The poor boy had died instantly after being bit. Alice had finally managed to position herself in a good spot, and she plunged her sword down to the hilt in the snake's left eye. The Titanoboa instantly started screeching in pain and, with greater strength than before, flung Alice and the others off and dropped the food in its mouth before writhing on the ground and slowly going still.

Remembering Garrick's introduction to Planet Tyber, Alice did not relax; she grabbed one of the other participants' swords and walked around the snake's head to the opposite side of where she stabbed her other sword in its eye. Planning on plunging the sword on the other side for good measure. However, as she arrived on the other side, the Titanoboa's eye suddenly opened, and it lunged at her. However, Alice did not panic.

She ducked down low and held the sword upwards at an angle just as the snake reached her. All the other participants thought she had been eaten. "Now we are doomed! If someone as strong as her couldn't beat that monster, what chance do we have?" a boy shouted as he plopped to the ground and gave up. The others dropped their weapons and waited for death.

However, after a few seconds, they noticed something was wrong. Why hadn't the snake turned around and eaten them? Suddenly the snake started to move. However, it did not turn around to eat them; instead, it fell to the ground. Then the snake's mouth began to move before it opened slowly. "Can I get a little help here this fucking thing is heavy as hell, and I need some help opening its mouth!" the voice of Alice sounded from the opening in the mouth.

The others sprinted over and helped Alice open the mouth of the snake. They were shocked she had survived but how. Is the snake actually dead? She had managed to kill such a giant monster?

"How did you do it? How did you survive, let alone kill that beast?" one of the boys asked.

"At the last second, I lowered myself closer to the ground and aimed my sword up. So when it tried to swallow me, it pierced its own brain with its own strength. It did all the work for me. It is simple physics, really." Alice said as she walked over to the snake and pulled out her sword from the snake's eye. The other sword was stuck in its skull.

Alice then took the sword and cut out one of the fangs from the snake's mouth. "Souvenir, otherwise no one would believe I killed this thing when I tell the story later." Alice waved the fang at them. The others began to laugh and sat down. They actually survived. Alice then cut off a few scales and handed them to them. "Here's proof; now you can say you helped the Great Alice Green slay a prehistoric monster." She smiled and then helped them up.

"Now, let's get out of this swamp. If we see other people, we can help. We should, as you just experienced, even if some of us die when fighting these creatures, as long as we have numbers and a plan. Some of us might survive this exam." Alice then walked back towards the base to the east while leading her new devout followers.