The Verdant Crucible's entrance materializes before us, a massive archway of twisted vines and crystalline growths that pulse with emerald light. Unlike the Labyrinth's clinical precision, this zone has a wild, untamed quality, nature pushed to its extreme limits and then twisted into something else entirely.

  "Everyone ready?" I ask, checking my equipment one final time. The gauntlets pulse with steady energy, the resonance blade hums at my side, and the velocity boots make even small adjustments feel unnaturally fluid.

  Desta nods, her expression neutral as always, eyes occasionally flickering with code as she processes information about our destination. "Verdant Crucible parameters indicate moderate environmental hazards. Statistical probability of successful navigation remains high given current team capabilities."

  Sera, by contrast, practically vibrates with excitement, small flames dancing between her fingers as she struggles to contain her enthusiasm. "Born ready," she says with a grin that seems to light up her entire face. "Been stuck doing maintenance duty for so long, I'd fight my way through a trash compactor just to do something different."

  I'm starting to see glimpses of her true personality emerge as her neural pathways continue healing, a sharp contrast to Desta's methodical calm.

  Zix'ilit bounces beside us, his frill expanded with excitement. "Verdant Crucible just reset! Perfect timing! Abandoned lab should be approximately 25.3 kilometers from entrance point! But watch out for other teams! C-ranked assets often use this zone for equipment farming!"

  We step through the entrance portal and emerge into what appears to be a massive biodome. The "sky" above is actually a transparent dome through which alien sunlight streams in prismatic patterns. Dense vegetation covers everything, plants with impossible geometries and colors growing in chaotic profusion. The air is thick with humidity and carries the scent of sweet decay.

  "This doesn't look so bad," Sera observes, a small electrical spark jumping between her fingers as she tests her abilities in the new environment.

  "The safe zone always looks pleasant," I remind her. "It's designed that way."

  I'm surprised to find the safe zone busier than expected. At least two dozen other assets mill about, checking equipment or conferring in small groups. What catches my attention, however, is how many of them appear to be human, at least half the assembled crowd.

  "That's... a lot of humans," I mutter, eyeing a nearby group who seem to be checking some kind of holographic map.

  "Statistically improbable given known advancement parameters," Desta agrees, her eyes flickering rapidly as she processes this unexpected data point.

  Curiosity gets the better of me, and I approach one of the human groups. Three men and a woman, all wearing matching gray bodysuits with blue trim, the mark of an independent sponsor emblazoned on their shoulders.

  "Hello," I greet them. "Team Exodus. I'm Gary."

  The nearest man, tall with close-cropped hair and an easy smile, extends his hand. "Team Exodus! I saw your fight with Team Brute Force! We're Team Vanguard. I'm Kevin. You guys must be from a facility, right?"

  I shake his hand, noting the slightly deferential tone when he mentions facilities. "Yeah, Facility 5. You're not?"

  Kevin laughs, sharing a glance with his teammates. "Nah, we're volunteers. Signed up about two weeks ago after the treaty was ratified."

  "Treaty?" I repeat, confusion evident in my voice.

  Kevin's expression shifts to surprise. "You don't know? Oh, I guess you wouldn't if you've been in a facility. Earth signed a formal treaty with the aliens about a month ago. Technology sharing, cultural exchange, the whole package." He gestures around at the Crucible. "Including access to their enhancement programs."

  The woman beside him nods enthusiastically. "The games are the biggest thing on Earth right now. Everyone's watching, millions trying to qualify for enhancement evaluation."

  "Wait," I hold up a hand, struggling to process this information. "You're saying people are volunteering to be here? To fight in these arenas?"

  "Hell yeah," Kevin replies with genuine enthusiasm. "Best opportunity in human history! Who wouldn't want superpowers?" He flexes his hand, and I notice the air around it rippling with what appears to be sound waves. "I can generate and manipulate sonic energy now. Back on Earth, I was just an accountant!"

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  I turn to Zix'ilit, who has been uncharacteristically quiet during this exchange. "You knew about this?"

  His frill ripples with apologetic blues. "Didn't think it was relevant to mention!"

  "If you guys were going to do this anyways, then why kidnap us?" I ask, anger welling up within me. "Why not just stick to volunteers?"

  "Program administration needed to determine if your species was suitable for Ascension Program participation!" Zix'ilit squeeks. "The training facilities were set up to understand human physiology and test enhancement integration!"

  "Ascension Program?" Sera interrupts, a small flame flaring momentarily between her fingers as her confusion sparks her abilities.

  "The big picture!" Zix'ilit bounces excitedly, colors shifting to enthusiastic yellows. "Helping developing species reach higher technological and biological potential through controlled enhancement integration!"

  Kevin nods. "The way they explained it to us, Earth is being fast-tracked because our baseline adaptability metrics were off the charts. The facilities were just Phase One testing."

  "You actually got lucky," the woman adds, looking at me with something like envy. "All the facility assets got snapped up by the premium sponsor groups. Us volunteers mostly get the independent sponsors who can't afford established assets."

  Actually, I’m also with an independent sponsor.

  I can feel my worldview shifting uncomfortably. All this time we'd been abducted, experimented on against our will. But if Kevin is to be believed, Earth's leadership knows about this and still made a deal with the aliens.

  "And the ten wins for freedom?" I ask, remembering the goal that drove Team Exodus from the beginning. "Is that real?"

  "Oh, absolutely," Kevin confirms. "That's the whole point of the system. Ten consecutive wins, you get your freedom. Go back to Earth as a fully enhanced human, pretty much a superhero. That's what we're all aiming for."

  I glance at Zix'ilit, whose bouncing has intensified. "Is that true? The freedom pathway is legitimate?"

  "Completely true!" he squeaks, frill expanding with excitement. "Not just return to homeworld either! After ten consecutive wins, assets can choose to become sponsors themselves! My great-great-grandfather was an asset who earned his freedom that way! Now my entire family are sponsors!"

  This revelation hits me like a truck. Even though we've been so desperately pursuing it, I was still never sure whether freedom actually existed or not. To hear it confirmed this way, it's like a weight lifted off of me.

  "So after ten wins, I could become a sponsor?" I ask, processing the implications.

  "Most winners do!" Zix'ilit confirms. "Though reaching ten wins is not easy! You are guaranteed to go up against S-ranks in your last few matches!"

  S-ranks huh? That does sound tricky. Given how easily I demolished the B-ranked Team Brute Force as only an A-minus rank, I can’t even imagine how powerful a S-rank might be. They’d probably be able to kill me with their little pinky!

  Kevin and his team check their equipment one final time before heading toward one of the Crucible's many branching paths. "Good luck out there," he calls back. "Hope to catch your next arena match. That victory over Brute Force was legendary!"

  As they disappear into the dense vegetation, I turn to my teammates, mind still reeling from these revelations.

  "So we were kidnapped... to become what? Beta testers?," Sera says slowly, a small electrical discharge crackling around her fingers as she processes this information.

  "Early enhancement subjects," Desta corrects, her eyes continuing to flicker with code. "Facility structure indicates controlled experimental parameters rather than standard enhancement procedures."

  "Exactly!" Zix'ilit confirms, bouncing in place. "The facilities helped refine enhancement protocols specifically for human physiology! Very important phase before widespread implementation!"

  I'm not sure how to feel about this. On one hand, knowing that the offer of freedom is legitimate gives our efforts new purpose. On the other hand, learning that Earth's leadership apparently approved this program raises uncomfortable questions about what else we haven't been told.

  "Does this change anything for us?" Sera asks directly, a spark of defiance in her eyes. "Because I don't care if some bureaucrats signed off on this. I'm still fighting my way out."

  Her response surprises me, it's the most emotion she's shown since joining Team Exodus. There's a hardness there, a stubborn determination that reminds me of Ember in our earliest days together.

  "It doesn't change our goal," I agree after a moment. "Ten consecutive wins, whether it's to become sponsors or return to Earth. Team Exodus is still seeking freedom."

  "Path calculation remains unchanged despite contextual parameter adjustment," Desta concludes with characteristic precision.

  Zix'ilit's frill ripples with approval. "Perfect! Now go find that laboratory!"

  Zix'ilit waves to us as we move deeper into the Verdant Crucible, leaving the safe zone behind. I still don't know what to think about everything we just learned. To think there are people who would willingly come here...

  But maybe they have a point. It's not like I'm fighting this hard to go back to my old life, I just don't like the idea of being at the mercy of someone else. As for my powers, I've already accepted them as a part of me.

  For now, though, there's a component to find and competitors to outpace. The abandoned laboratory awaits somewhere in this twisted jungle, and Team Exodus intends to reach it first.