The Choice Made by All

A few hours after the bright orb of light disappeared, Adrian sat on the stone platform as he faced a few others. Amber sat just next to him, her arm wrapped around his. He knew she wasn't seeking his presence for comfort, but rather keeping him in her sights.

Before Adrian were the five stones he had seen earlier. Each of them continued to wait for him as they hovered in the air like bubbles in the ocean. All of the people in front of him, including Amber, also had a set of stones hovering before them.

"We don't know what's waiting for us if we decide to do this!" the voice of a tall bald man argued, "We've already seen what happened to a few others when they chose their stone!"

"They disappeared, sure," the voice of a young boy with a blue hat replied.

"They didn't just disappear," Baldy replied, "it looked like their bodies burned up! I say we wait until we get more information."

"The voice said this was a game. Naturally, we have to play it," Adrian muttered. Only a few heads turned in his direction, probably because his voice was quieter than most. After a few moments, though, the group was quiet as he spoke, "You can't win a game by refusing to play. The only question is what these stones even do. Do they provide power? Equipment? What sort of advantage does each stone give us? What's the end goal of this game that we've been chosen to play?"

"It didn't explain," Baldy answered as he looked over to Adrian, "Precisely my point. We don't know enough! Even if we play this game, we don't know what happens if we win!"

"I think a better question is: What happens if we lose?" Amber replied in Adrian's stead. Her red eyes scanned over the people in front of her before she finally rested her eyes upon Baldy with an expression of scorn, "Is there a punishment? If so, what is it? This creature is capable of ripping us from our reality into its own. I don't think it'll be as lenient as your elementary English teacher."

"There won't be any time-out corners," Adrian warned. Then, he stood and Amber soon followed, "So stop trying to convince us not to play."

"We're not interested," Amber said. The two of them quickly walked away from the large group. As they walked, Adrian looked around the stone platform. Occasionally, he saw a spark of light in the distance as another player chose to grasp their chosen Rune.

"Should we assume this is a game?" Amber muttered quietly. Adrian looked back at her and found her gazing at the stones hovering in front of her. Adrian shrugged.

"We should assume the punishment for losing the game is death," Adrian replied, "So we should choose what seems like the best choice for combat. The sword and dagger are both physical weapons, but I'm curious about the eye symbol."

"Maybe it refines your eyesight?" Amber wondered aloud.

"I thought so too, but that seems like it wouldn't help that much with combat. What about the other two?" Adrian said, "The staff and the cross?"

"A mage and a healer, maybe? The sword and the dagger both make me think we'll be transported to a fantasy world, like those old video games Dad played," Amber theorized, "If we choose a mage, we'll probably get powers that do a lot of damage. If we choose a cross, we'll be able to heal our wounds?"

"I think I'll choose the mage one, then. I'll first worry about my strength before how durable I am. It would be pointless to be almost indestructible if I can't destroy my opponents."

"By that point, it'll turn into a battle of attrition," Amber nodded, "We don't know enough about this game to make that viable. I'm of your mind. Let's choose the mage Rune."

"Together?" Adrian asked as he turned to look into the eyes of his sister. She smiled, then quickly nodded. The two of them clasped hands once more as they grasped their palms forward. The cold surface of the purple rune touched Adrian's hand as he wrapped his fingers around it.

"Adrian, if we get separated," Amber said. Her hand began to glow bright. The skin upon her fingers exploded in colors unknown to Adrian, but she didn't wince in pain. The same occurrence happened to Adrian's skin, but he felt nothing wrong- only the feeling of a warm blanket covering his hand. 

"Survive and find each other," Adrian nodded. The warmth from his hand began to spread throughout his body as it took the light show with it. Adrian looked back at his sister, "Go to the capital city of the largest nation in the world. I will find you there."

"Good luck," Amber nodded. Suddenly, the world around Adrian turned bright white. The warmth from his arm quickly spread to the rest of his body, covering every untouched part of the skin he wore. The feeling of his sister's hand in his own disappeared, confirming Adrian's fear. He took a deep breath as a thick wave of nervousness washed over him. He had never been apart from his sister, not since birth. Now, however, that suddenly changed. Adrian felt fear and dread as he imagined the next few days- weeks- or even months without the constant presence of his twin.

However, in the next moment, the feeling of his sister's hand returned. He grasped it firmly as he let out a loud sigh of relief. His sister, in reply, also grasped his hand tightly. Adrian felt her fingers shaking in what he assumed was a mixture of relief and fear. Soon after, the bright light blinding him disappeared, revealing his surroundings.

However, before he even looked, he quickly turned to Amber. He stepped forward, then wrapped his arms around her as a large grin formed on his face. She did the same as an excited laugh erupted out of her mouth.

"We're still here! We're still here!" She laughed as she grasped Adrian's hoodie tightly. After a moment of silence, Adrian finally looked up and examined his surroundings. Amber did the same.

They were standing in the middle of a forest road. The sky above them was blocked by a thick canopy of green leaves growing out of the thick tree trucks that surrounded them. The forest was old- its trees thick and its roots deep. A great shadow fell upon the ground below- blocking the light from above.

The air wasn't humid nor was the ground wet. It was a thick forest, but not dense enough to be called a rainforest. Adrian knew it was daytime from the warmth around him and the color of the leaves above, but he couldn't tell what time of day it was. For all he knew, they only had an hour of daylight left.

Fortune smiled upon them, however, for they were currently standing on a stone road. The stone was a bit overgrown- a wide variety of weeds and grass had already planted foundations in what cracks could be found.

"Follow it," Amber nodded as Adrian turned in her direction. He turned back to the road, then took a step forward. However, as soon as his foot landed upon the stone, he felt a searing pain spread across his back. Adrian cried out in surprise and pain as he fell to his knees. His voice was loud and sudden, earning a surprise from Amber. However, as soon as she moved, she also dropped to the ground as she screamed out in pain. The two of them fell to the ground, each struggling to resist the sensation swallowing the skin upon their backs.