Test and Sacrifices

Test of the mind

They continued down the hall and found another resting area. Upon entry a voice message played. " You're still alive, that's surprising. Perhaps Things need to be harder. You’ve been able to use tricks to avoid an unknown puzzle. Well maybe I should punish you with no puzzles, or logic, just strength of body and mind. I hope you enjoy the next test, for it is more than one room . It will be quite colorful in some parts and normal in others. Rest well cause you’ll need all the strength you two pipsqueaks have.”

The voice then laughed and afterwards the recording shut off.

“Well, we’re probably screwed.” Owen casually commented. “Yeah we most likely are, but we've already made it this far.” They both laughed. There was nothing they could do about the danger lying ahead so they both just learned to laugh off any fear or pain from now on. It was pointless to cry or quiver.

Despite the pointlessness of wondering, Owen could not help but think about what lies ahead. He thought back to the voice recording and some of the things it said.No puzzles? Punishment? Just strength of body and mind? 'What did all that even mean and more importantly what is this place?’ he thought to himself. His head began to ache from wondering too much so he decided to sit on a chair in the corner of the room and rest. His eyes closed as he surrendered to unconsciousness.

Meanwhile Julia began to try to figure out what was ahead of them. If the next room was harder, then they would have to be more alert than ever before. She began to make a mental list of all the rooms.

First one was her room. It was the test of either overpowering her or gaining her trust. She was a weapon, and had killed many people. Probably at least six. She knew she was strong. The experiments made her more resilient and stronger than most humans.

The second room was based on illusion and sacrifice. If they had chosen the tunnel that led to the first room they would have never encountered the monster. The sacrifice part only had to do with the monster so that room was determined by first choice. It was rather easy in her opinion. The fear factor of the monster was the worst part.

The third room was Cereberus’s room. A dog like beast that was beyond terrifying. They cheated that room. The puzzle must have been knowledge on something that they did not know about. So far they’ve been able to find tricks and ways to escape each room but now they might be facing something that they can’t trick.

She looked over to Owen and thought “How could he bring himself to rest? Grave danger clearly lies ahead and there he is resting.” She shook her head in disbelief. She wished that she could be at ease like Owen was now. It had been years since she was truly at peace.

Despite her racing mind Juila decided to lay down on the ground and rest. There was another chair but she felt like laying on the floor for some reason. Maybe the reason was that she had grown so used to the floor. She couldn’t sleep but she laid there staring at the ceiling.

Owen awoke to find Julia up and pacing around. “You okay ?” He questioned softly. She then turned to him sharply and. “Yes I'm totally fine, not like we’re trapped in a place of terror and death and have now been told it’s going to get worse from here on. Of course I’m not okay and shouldn’t be either.” She said this in a rough tone as if a part of her was now losing hope.

Owen was trying to block out his doubt but he understood the anxiety she felt because it also plagued him.

They headed to the door and down another long hallway in silence. It was cold and dark. Nothing but dark gray that boarderlined black surrounded them. The only sounds were the echo of their footsteps.

Something about darkness made lost feel like an emotion if it wasn’t already one. It brought uneasiness to life. This whole place was filled with psychological torment. Of course the dark silent hall was what they had to walk through to get to the room that was said to be worse than the ones before.

With the silence weighing on Owen’s mind he finally spoke. “How long do you think we’ve been walking?” he asked in an attempt to erase the grip silence had over the room but Julia wasn’t in the mood. She didn’t respond. The silence didn’t bother Juila as much as it did Owen. For years it was either silence or screams for her. She easily got lost in thought and was accustomed to the dark. She quickened her pace.

Owen did as well so he wouldn’t lose her in the darkness. Finally they saw neon light radiating from beyond. By the time they reached the door they were tired . There was a huge door and despite their tiredness of walking down the hall something about made them wish the hall was longer.

The light creeping out from underneath the door illuminated the area well enough for them to quickly find the door knob. Julia placed her hand on it slowly and then flinched back. It was indescribably cold.

“What’s wrong?” Owen asked. “The door…. It’s freezing. Like colder than ice, kind of freezing.” She said in a shocked tone of voice . Owen touched it as well and began to turn the knob . He then looked at her strangely. “Julia, it's warm.”

She placed her hand on it again and indeed as Owen said it now felt warm. “It’s not possible. Just a moment before it was so cold that it hurt to touch it.” She said in confusion. She then whispered “ Strength of mind. The test has already started .”

Owen saw what she meant. “The voice message, the long dark hallway, and now this door were all meant to mess with us.” Owen said in realization. Julia only nodded. There was nothing else to do but head on further.

The had already begun was mostly likely to get worse but they swallowed their fear, for it would nowhere. Slowly they opened the door and stepped into the next room and what they saw next was even more unexpected and in its own way was terrifying. “Julia, I think this is a trap.” Owen said slowly as the door closed behind them. Julia nodded her head in agreement.

They were very careful as they entered the strange horror that laid before them. A feeling of uneasiness filled the air within the room. Both of them were puzzled and shocked by all that they had seen throughout their journey. This was one of the most shocking sights so far due to its misplaced look.

With the silence weighing on Owen’s mind he finally spoke. “How long do you think we’ve been walking?” he asked in an attempt to erase the grip silence had over the room but Julia wasn’t in the mood. She didn’t respond. The silence didn’t bother Juila as much as it did Owen. For years it was either silence or screams for her. She easily got lost in thought and was accustomed to the dark. She quickened her pace.

Owen did as well so he wouldn’t lose her in the darkness. Finally they saw neon light radiating from beyond. By the time they reached the door they were tired . There was a huge door and despite their tiredness of walking down the hall something about made them wish the hall was longer.

The light creeping out from underneath the door illuminated the area well enough for them to quickly find the door knob. Julia placed her hand on it slowly and then flinched back. It was indescribably cold.

“What’s wrong?” Owen asked. “The door…. It’s freezing. Like colder than ice, kind of freezing.” She said in a shocked tone of voice . Owen touched it as well and began to turn the knob . He then looked at her strangely. “Julia, it's warm.”

She placed her hand on it again and indeed as Owen said it now felt warm. “It’s not possible. Just a moment before it was so cold that it hurt to touch it.” She said in confusion. She then whispered “ Strength of mind. The test has already started .”